


Reading Percy Jackson: Book 4 - The Battle of the Labyrinth

by Lorixjake



Series: Reading Percy Jackson [4]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Angst, Book 4: The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson), Characters reading the Percy Jackson books, Children of the Big Three (Percy Jackson), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Family Bonding, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gods become better parents, M/M, Protective Apollo, Protective Poseidon (Percy Jackson), Reading the Books, Slow Burn, Thalia Grace & Percy Jackson Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-12
Updated: 2021-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:27:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 134,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28035414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lorixjake/pseuds/Lorixjake
Summary: Now the group move on to the fourth book, and the last one before they move on to reading about the future. The books become more emotional, will it make or break the readers?
Relationships: Annabeth Chase & Connor Stoll, Clarisse La Rue/Chris Rodriguez, Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Hera/Zeus (Percy Jackson), Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Katie Gardner/Travis Stoll, Nico di Angelo & Thalia Grace & Percy Jackson, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Percy Jackson & Grover Underwood, Percy Jackson & Poseidon, Percy Jackson & Triton, Percy Jackson/Apollo
Series: Reading Percy Jackson [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1834675
Comments: 612
Kudos: 962





	1. I Battle the Cheerleading Squad

Nico grabbed Percy on his way out of the throne room.

“Can we talk?”

“Sure.” Percy agreed. They headed to one of the many empty rooms and sat down. “Everything ok?”

“Yeah.” Nico sighed. “I just wanted to apologise for my behaviour last summer.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Percy waved the apology away. “I don’t blame you. I promised to protect your sister. You lost the only family you thought you had left. I wouldn’t have done much better. When I thought my mom was dead my first plan was to head to the Underworld and get her back.” 

“You didn’t run away from Camp though.” Nico pointed out.

“I probably would have done if that quest hadn’t come along.” Percy shrugged. “But like I said, don’t worry about it now. You don’t hate me anymore.”

“I never really hated you.” Nico admitted. “Actually I…” He stopped himself.

“You what?” Percy raised an eyebrow. Nico swallowed. 

“I hadacrushonyou.” He said super quickly. Percy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

“You what?” 

“I had a crush on you.” Nico said more slowly. “I don’t anymore.” He added hurriedly. “But back then I saw you as some super powerful hero who could do anything. You are funny, protective, great at fighting, everything. But since we came here, I realised that I had a crush on who I thought you were. I mean, you are all those things but you’re just a regular guy.”

“So you don’t have a crush on regular old me? Just super awesome me?” Percy grinned a little. Nico went red.

“Kind of. I still like you but now I kind of consider you an older brother.” Nico went even redder as he said this.

“I’m glad.” Percy told him. “But it does explain a lot. Honestly I thought you had a crush on Annabeth.” 

“Annabeth? No.” Nico shook his head violently. He could not imagine liking Annabeth in that way. 

“By the way, I consider you like my little brother too.” Percy told him. “And I’m pretty sure Thalia does too. We’re family.” Nico nodded. Percy reached over to pull him into a hug. “Besides, you seem pretty close to Will.” He added with a smirk. Nico pulled away from the hug, his face the colour of a tomato.

“I don’t...Will is...yeah. I like Will.” He finally admitted.

Percy smiled. “Good for you. Poor Will though.” 

“Hey!” 

“Just kidding.” Nico punched him on the arm. “Come on. We should get back.” Nico nodded. They made their way back to the throne room.

***************************

Clarisse dragged Chris over to a quiet corner of the dining hall. 

“Are you going to be ok, reading the next book?” She asked quietly. Chris smiled at her.

“I think so. It’s not like I remember much from the Labyrinth.”

“Still.” She bit her lip with worry. 

“What about you? Are you going to be ok?” Chris asked. He knew Clarisse had been into the Labyrinth. She would remember the horrors that were contained within it. 

“I’ll be fine.” She said dismissively.

“You know you don’t have to pretend with me.” He reminded her. He knew Clarisse hated to look weak and he accepted that part of her but he wanted them to be honest with each other.

“It won’t be fun. But we’ll get through it.” She said.

  
“Together.” Chris agreed. “Come on, I want to grab some snacks to take back.” Clarisse rolled her eyes but took his hand and they headed over to the tables with the food on. 

Shortly after, everyone made their way back to the throne room. They all took the same seats as before except Apollo had moved back beside Percy.

“I will read.” Hades announced. He picked up the new book.

**I Battle the Cheerleading Squad**

“Errr, what?” Apollo asked.

“They were monsters.” Percy shrugged.

“Monster cheerleaders?” Will asked.

  
“I played dodgeball with cannibals.” Percy reminded him.

“You know what, I’m glad I don’t go to the same school as you.” Beckendorf laughed. “Way too weird.”

**The last thing I wanted to do on my summer break was blow up another school.**

“How do you blow up a school during summer break?” Leo asked.

“I’m special that way.” Percy deadpanned. Leo grinned.

**But there I was Monday morning...it would take me to get kicked out of this place.**

“Apparently not long.” Apollo grinned.

“Yeah.” Percy sighed. “But I didn’t actually want to get kicked out of this one. Paul teaches there.”

“Oh.” Apollo pulled a face. “Yeah, not the best one to blow up.”

  
“I didn’t get much choice.” Percy protested. “Besides, Paul understood. Once we explained about monsters and stuff.” 

“He knows?” Beckendorf asked.

“Yeah. We sort of had to tell him after what happened.” Percy grinned sheepishly.

**“Just relax.”...“Yes.”**

“She does know it’s Percy she’s talking to right?” Katie laughed.

“I don’t blow up _every_ school I go to.” Percy defended himself.

“Just most of them.” Annabeth grinned.

“Only, like...two or three? Technically it wasn’t actually me who blew up any of them. Monsters did that.” 

**Paul Blofis, my mom’s boyfriend...but he wouldn’t listen.**

“That was nice of him.” Gwen smiled.

“Yeah.” Percy nodded. Paul was a good guy. 

**I looked at my mom...“So we don’t scare him away.”**

“Well, it’s pretty strange stuff.” Will said.

**“I’m sure orientation will be fine, Percy, It’s only one morning.”**

“That’s all he needs.” Connor laughed.

“Fighting monsters is pretty destructive.” Clarisse said.

**“Great,” I mumbled...“It’s just Annabeth, Mom. Jeez!”**

Apollo smiled slightly at Percy’s denial while Annabeth looked mildly offended at his reaction.

**“She’s coming all the way…“Just the two of you.”**

“That does sound like a date.” Piper said. Percy glared at her.

“Or something friends do.” He stated firmly. 

**“Mom!”...ratty jeans decorated with marker drawings.**

Everyone turned to look at Rachel.

“Yeah, that’s me.” Rachel nodded, smiling. 

“I was so horrified to see you there.” Percy admitted.

“I could tell.” Rachel laughed.

**When she turned...redheaded girl wouldn’t see me.**

“Not much chance of that.” Travis said. “She’ll see you eventually.”

“Yeah, some people might get away with it but not with your luck.” Triton stated. 

“Are you saying that Percy’s bad luck is the reason I was there?” Rachel grinned.

“Na, just the reason he wouldn’t be able to avoid you for the whole time.” Connor told her.

**What was she doing here? Not even my luck could be this bad.**

“Ha! Your luck is usually worse.” Apollo told him.

  
“I know. It got way worse.” Percy sighed.

**Yeah, right...could get a lot worse.**

“I can’t believe that would surprise you.” Annabeth said. Percy just shrugged.

**Sneaking into orientation…would be that friendly to me.**

A few people gave Percy strange looks. 

**One was blond with icy blue eyes...know what I’m talking about).**

Poseidon and Apollo both grimaced at that reminder. 

**Both girls had their names...“What’s your name, fish?”**

“Fish?” Jason frowned. “Does she know about Percy?” 

“Another word for Freshmen.” Rachel told him.

**“Fish?”...“We’ve been waiting for you.”**

“That’s creepy.” Chris grimaced.

“Yep. They are probably monsters.” Jason nodded.

“Monster cheerleaders? That would explain a lot.” Katie said.

**That sent a major Uh-oh chill down my back.**

“Well that settles it. Percy’s instincts are great.” Reyna nodded. 

**They were blocking the…I kept my lethal ballpoint pen, Riptide.**

“I love how you always refer to it as a lethal ballpoint pen instead of a sword.” Clarisse grinned.

“It’s almost always in pen form so I think about it as a pen.” Percy shrugged.

**Then another voice came...Clang.**

“Err, clang? Legs aren’t supposed to ‘clang’?” Beckendorf pointed out.

“Nope.” Reyna agreed.

“Metal peg leg?” Leo suggested.

“That looks like a regular human leg?” Chris asked. Leo shrugged.

**Her leg made a hollow...the cheerleaders laughing behind me.**

“Creepy.” Piper shuddered.

**“There you are!” Paul told me…you look like you’ve seen a ghost.”**

“Not quite.” Percy said.

**“Yeah, uh—”...he’d run away screaming.**

“He did think we were crazy but he didn’t run screaming.” Percy grinned.

“Good for him.” Apollo smiled.

**Those cheerleaders, for instance…She noticed me.**

“Naturally.” Nico chuckled. 

“He did look a bit like a deer in the headlights.” Rachel grinned.

“So did you.” Percy reminded her.

**Her eyes widened...but I was already running.**

“Way to not look suspicious.” Beckendorf said.

**I thought I’d lost her...Hey, we’re cool.**

“They did not look cool.” Rachel scoffed.

“True.” Percy agreed.

**Teachers milled around...made me want to throw up.**

“I do not blame you.” Clarisse looked disgusted.

“Goode is good? Really?” Leo grimaced.

“None of the others were any better.” Percy assured him. 

**None of the other freshmen...At least that’s what the brochure said.**

“Yeah. It got worse.” Reyna wrinkled her nose.

“There is nothing wrong with preparing early.” Athena scowled.

**The marching band stopped playing...my redheaded nightmare.**

“Rude.” Rachel complained.

“But not wrong. You’re still a redheaded nightmare.” Percy grinned. Rachel stuck her tongue out while noting his change of phrasing. In his thoughts he had referred to her as ‘his’ redheaded nightmare but now he had referred to her as simply ‘a’ nightmare. 

**“Rachel Elizabeth Dare,” I said...nerve to remember her name.**

“I was just surprised.” Rachel told him. “We’d met one, six months ago. It was pretty surprising you had remembered my name.” Rachel shrugged.

**“And you’re Percy somebody...What are you doing here?”**

“What did you think she was doing there? Stalking you?” Grover laughed.

“Maybe?” Percy grinned sheepishly. “Not really, I kinda just assumed that she lived near Hoover Dam.”

**“Same as you, I guess. Orientation.”...from time to time, okay?),**

Rachel smirked to herself while Apollo and Annabeth both grimaced.

**I always figured she lived...You know, your typical chance meeting.**

“Isn’t that how you always meet people?” Leo asked, jokingly.

“It’s not the worst first meeting I’ve had.” Percy shrugged.

“Weirdly, it’s not the worst first meeting I’ve had either.” Rachel admitted.

“So, what’s your worst?” Grover asked.

“I’ll tell you some other time.” She promised.

**Some guy behind us whispered...just stared at the cheerleaders in horror.**

“They were pretty horrifying to look at.” Rachel grimaced.

**Tammi didn’t seem to notice...He’d wonder what was wrong.**

“Besides, the monsters are less likely to attack while you’re in a room full of people.” Clarisse pointed out.

“Rachel was already leaving. I didn’t want her going off alone.” Percy shrugged.

**Then I thought about Rachel Elizabeth Dare...I got up and followed her out of the gym.**

“Why do you keep saying my full name? It’s not like you know any other Rachels.” Rachel asked.

“No idea. Just stuck with me I guess.” He shrugged again.

**I found Rachel in the band room...“You…you wouldn’t believe me.”**

“You do know he was running from the skeletons last time you met?” Dakota pointed out.

“I didn’t know he knew they were skeletons. For all I knew, he could have thought he was running from security.” Rachel said.

“With a sword?” Piper asked.

“He could have just been weird. Or had a fake sword. It was the only reason I could come up with for why the sword didn’t kill me.” 

**“Oh, yeah, I would,” I promised...Like you’re not.”**

“Good going, Percy.” Annabeth rolled her eyes.

“She could see through the Mist.” Percy pointed out. “I had to tell her something.”

“By calling her a mortal?” 

“That just slipped out.” Percy admitted sheepishly.

**I felt like punching a bongo...names when I’m around, okay?”**

“Oh because you’re so good at that.” Beckendorf laughed. 

“I’ve gotten better.” Percy defended himself.

**“And the Furies,” she said, warming up. “And the Sirens, and—”**

“Take a hint.” Apollo said in annoyance. With Percy’s luck she would actually attract all those monsters.

“Sorry. I didn’t know it was that big of a deal.” Rachel shrugged.

**“Okay!” I looked around the...I’d just confirmed her worst suspicion.**

“No, actually I was relieved. Terrified but relieved.” Rachel told him. “You kind of confirmed I wasn’t crazy. Not completely anyway.” 

“Definitely crazy.” Percy grinned.

**“You don’t know how...“I’m not a monster.”**

“She’d have been able to see if you were.” Silena pointed out. Percy nodded.

**“Well, I know that...but I took the plunge.**

“Good job I did.” Percy said, thinking of how Rachel had gotten them through the Labyrinth.

“Yeah.” Grover agreed. Annabeth also nodded but looked quite unhappy about that fact. She still didn’t like the fact that the mortal girl had been able to navigate the Labyrinth when she had not.

**“I’m a half-blood,” I said...The doors slammed shut behind them.**

“That’s not good.” Connor said.

“You probably shouldn’t have hidden in a room with no other exit.” Travis agreed with his brother.

**“There you are, Percy Jackson,”...Rachel seemed too stunned to answer.**

“You don’t wanna see.” Rachel assured him.

“I saw enough.” Percy said.

**“Oh, forget her.” Tammi...her hair swept over her shoulders…**

Apollo scowled.

**“Percy,” Rachel warned...my pocket and uncapped it.**

“Good.” Poseidon breathed. 

**Riptide grew into...but somehow intoxicating smell.**

“Should I be worried?” Grover smirked.

  
“Eww, no.” Percy wrinkled his nose. Grover pouted.

“No need to react like that.”

“Pretty sure there is.”

**Rachel pinched my arm, hard. “Percy, she wants to bite you! Look at her!”**

“Seducing guys and wanting to bite you. Did you fight vampires?” Nico asked, with a bit too much excitement in his voice for Percy’s liking.

“No but I think they are where the idea of vampires came from.” Percy said with a thoughtful expression, trying to remember what Annabeth had told him.

“Empousai.” Artemis said.

“Yeah. Them.” Percy nodded.

**She’s just jealous,”...“Get back.”**

“Keep fighting, Perc.” Apollo said, biting his lip.

**She snarled. “Freshmen,”...Her teeth grew into fangs.**

“Sounds like a vampire to me.” Piper said.

“Vampires with metal legs?” Leo frowned. “Cool.”

**“A vampire!” I stammered...but it was made of bronze.**

“Now that’s just plain freaky.” Reyna said.

“They were not pleasant to look at.” Rachel agreed. 

“It’s still pretty cool.” Nico said.

“Not when they are trying to drain all your blood.” Percy grimaced.

“Point taken.” Nico said, wrinkling his nose.

**“Uhh, a vampire with—”...“It’s rude to make fun!”**

“It’s also rude to kill people.” Katie pointed out.

“I’m pretty sure murder is worse than making fun.” Travis said, shooting her a slightly concerned look. Katie just smiled innocently at him.

**She advanced on her weird...not facing those red eyes and sharp fangs.**

Everybody laughed at that mental image.

“Definitely funnier when they aren’t trying to kill you.” Percy said.

**“A vampire, you say?” Kelli laughed...We are empousai, servants of Hecate.”**

“Does this mean Hecate has turned against us?” Hermes asked. “Or are they acting alone?”

“If she has betrayed us, she will pay.” Zeus vowed furiously. Percy opened his mouth but decided against saying anything just yet. 

“If Hecate has betrayed us...how many others will follow?” Demeter wondered anxiously. 

“I will see them punished for this. As soon as we are done here.” Zeus swore. Percy abandoned his good intentions then.

“Making them pay for something they haven’t even done yet is precisely why they turn against you.” He said angrily. 

“We don’t know anything yet.” Poseidon stepped in. “Let us continue reading to find out exactly what we are facing.” Zeus grumbled and Percy wanted to say more but under his dad’s stern gaze he backed down.

**“Mmmm.” Tammi edged...us from animal, bronze, and ghost!**

“Why would anyone want to form something out of those materials?” Leo asked.

**We exist to feed on the blood...snare drum at the empousa’s head.**

“Better than some other things you could throw at monsters.” Percy grinned.

“I work with what I have.” Rachel shrugged but she was grinning too.

**The demon hissed and...“No!” I slashed with Riptide.**

“Sure fight for other people but not yourself.” Apollo said angrily.

“I can’t help that, that's what motivates me.” Percy shrugged.

“I just wish that your own life being in danger would motivate you.” Apollo sighed.

“It does. Sometimes.” Percy muttered. “But if other people are around, I would rather protect them first.” Apollo nodded grimly. It was a step up from not caring about his own life at all, or actively wishing he could drown. Still, he hoped that it would get better. Or, better yet, he could give Percy a reason to want to live.

**Tammi tried to dodge...exploded into dust all over Rachel.**

“One down, one to go.” Beckendorf said cheerfully.

“Yeah but that was the easy one.” Percy sighed.

**Rachel coughed….dumped on her head. “Gross!”**

A few people chuckled.

“It is gross but it’s better than having dead monster bodies all over the place.” Jason pointed out. Rachel nodded.

**“Monsters do that,” I said...lesson in school spirit, half-blood!”**

“Er, I think you’re the one who needs the lessons.” Gwen said. 

**Then she too began to change...“Then you’re overdue!”**

A few more people sniggered.

“That means she’ll be a lot more dangerous.” Triton said.

“Yeah. We noticed that.” Rachel muttered.

**Kelli was a lot faster than Tammi...but it was really distracting.**

“Yeah. I hate it when we can sort of see the monsters but not quite.” Chris grumbled.

**“Poor dear.” Kelli chuckled...you can do to stop it.**

“If anyone can, it’s Percy.” Grover said confidently. All of the Greeks nodded in agreement while Percy blushed.

**It would be merciful to end...“why did you throw that?”**

“Really?” Connor asked in amusement. “She’s trying to blame you?”

“She knew it would be too difficult to kill Percy when other people arrived.” Katie guessed.

“Doesn’t mean she needed to blame me.” Percy grumbled.

**I was too surprised to answer...stop her from hurting the mortals.**

“She won’t care about the mortals.” Triton said. 

“I didn’t want to take that chance.” Percy told him.

**“Percy, don’t!” Rachel shouted...Kelli exploded into flames like a Molotov cocktail.**

“What the heck?” Beckendorf asked.

“How did she do that?” Katie wondered.

“I don’t know.” Percy sighed, resigned to the fact that he would always be blamed for stuff that went wrong.

**Waves of fire splashed over everything...“What have you done?”**

“He forgave you right?” Reyna asked.

“Once we explained what really happened, yeah he did.” Percy nodded.

**Kids screamed and ran down the hall...for the broken band room window.**

“Well, running away will make you look guilty.” Piper said.

“Staying would probably get him arrested.” Leo reminded her.

**I burst out of the alley onto...“Watch where you’re going, Seaweed Brain.”**

“I really should have known better.” Annabeth sighed.

“Did you not notice the fire alarms going off?” Connor asked.

“No.” She admitted. “I wasn’t paying attention.” 

**For a split second she was in a good mood...Annabeth’s smile melted.**

“Yeah. That would ruin the mood.” Thalia snickered. Annabeth punched her in the arm.

“Shut up.” She hissed.

**She stared at Rachel...black smoke and ringing fire alarms.**

“That’s the last time I'll meet you after school.” Annabeth smirked at Percy. “The first time I saved you from those monsters and this time the school was on fire.”

“Neither of those things were my fault. Especially this one. They were already using that school to hunt.” Percy pointed out. “One of them referred to it as ‘their’ school.”

**She frowned at me...Um, she’s a friend, I guess.”**

“You guess?” Rachel raised an eyebrow.

“Well, I wasn’t sure what else to call you. This was only the second time we’d met.” Percy shrugged. “But we were more than just acquaintances.”

“Fair enough.” 

**I wasn’t sure what else to call Rachel...I couldn’t just call her nobody.**

“So you weren’t even going for acquaintance...you were gonna call me a nobody.” Rachel pretended to be offended.

“I was more likely to go for random weirdo.” Percy smirked. She stuck her tongue out at him.

**“Hi,” Rachel said...And you still owe me an explanation!”**

“Not really the time.” Hermes said.

“Well, at the rate we were going it would never be the time.” Rachel said. 

**Police sirens wailed on FDR Drive...wrote a phone number on my hand.**

“Permanent marker?” Piper laughed.

“It did wash off eventually.” Percy said. “Took forever though.”

“Didn’t want you losing my number.” Rachel grinned.

**“You’re going to call me...“I’ll tell them it wasn’t your fault. Just go!”**

“Thanks for that.” Percy smiled gratefully.

“I’d say anytime but I’m worried you would actually take me up on that.” She laughed.

“He probably would.” Poseidon sighed. His son got into way too much trouble.

**She ran back toward the school...“So you told her the truth?”**

“There wasn’t much choice.” Grover said.

“I know.” Annabeth grimaced. She knew she had treated Rachel pretty terribly because she was jealous. Even if she had refused to admit that to anyone, even herself.

**“She recognized me from Hoover Dam...“I—I never thought about it.”**

“Suuuure you didn’t.” Travis whistled.

“Does that mean you think Rachel is cute?” Katie asked him.

“Err...no. I mean I didn’t…” Travis stuttered until he saw her smirk. “Oh shut up.” He said grumpily.

“I didn’t say anything.”

“Your smirk did.”

**Annabeth kept walking toward York Avenue...Annabeth wouldn’t even look at me.**

“It’s not his fault.” Apollo stared at Annabeth.

“Yeah. I know.” She said again, a little irritable this time.

**“I guess our afternoon is off...police will be searching for you.”**

“Probably a good idea.” Silena said. “Knowing Percy’s luck the movie theatre you go to will be the first place they search for some random reason.”

“True.” Grover nodded.

**Behind us, smoke billowed...“We have to get to Camp Half-Blood. Now.”**

“Chapter is done.” Hades announced.

“My turn then.” Rachel said.


	2. The Underworld Sends Me a Prank Call

“Why would the Underworld send a prank call?” Silena asked. Nico grimaced. He wished Percy hadn’t seen what he had been doing. That meant his dad was going to know.

“Does ‘the Underworld’ mean Nico?” Will asked.

“Nico wouldn’t call Percy. He doesn’t exactly like him at the moment.” Chris pointed out.

“He might prank call him though.” Connor said.

“We could just let Rachel read and find out.” Katie stated. Rachel smirked, and started reading.

**Nothing caps off the perfect...I’d just punched her grandmother.**

“I’m sorry.” Annabeth said. She had no idea how Percy was coping with all of his innermost thoughts being read out to a large group of people. Just knowing some of her secrets were being discovered set her on edge, let alone actually reading her thoughts. It was probably a good job they were not reading hers. She hadn’t been thinking any nice things then and she didn’t want people knowing the extent of her jealousy. She also felt a bit guilty. Here she was getting jealous over a mortal girl while still having feelings for Luke too. And they had read how much that annoyed Percy, though she wasn’t totally sure if that was jealousy on his part or just a hatred of Luke.

“Don’t worry about it.” Percy told her. Honestly he was kind of used to it by now.

**All I managed to get out of her...hadn’t even told me she was in New York);**

“They were only really short stops.” Annabeth told him.

“You still could have said hi.” He frowned. 

“That year before we stormed Mount Tam was pretty full on.” Dakota mused. “So many monsters.” Dionysus looked at his son with some concern.

“Yeah. We were going out to kill stuff pretty much every day.” Reyna nodded. “I’m surprised we never ran into you, Annabeth.”

“I didn’t leave the house much. It was too dangerous.” Annabeth told her. All the Romans who had been at Camp Jupiter at the time nodded. It had been bad enough for them going out in groups, let alone a solo camper.

**and she’d learned nothing about the whereabouts of Nico di Angelo (long story).**

“You guys were looking for me the whole time?” Nico asked, going wide eyed. He knew Percy had searched for him for a bit but he had no idea Annabeth had helped, nor that they had looked for so long.

“Of course.” Percy told him. “You’d been missing for six months. Anything could have happened.” 

“Err, thanks.” Nico said, looking both pleased and confused.

Will watched Nico, his heart breaking just a little for the boy who was so surprised that anyone would actually bother to look for him. And for the fact that he had most likely been living on the streets that entire time. 

“Were you ok?” He asked quietly.

“I got by. I listened to someone I shouldn’t have but I wasn’t in any physical danger.” Nico admitted.

“You’re never running away again.” Will stated.

“I don’t…”

  
“You  _ do _ belong at Camp. You remember that Jason, Piper and Leo commented that there were more cabins at Camp when they arrived? Maybe we managed to convince Zeus to allow one for Hades’ kids. And if not, then we will make him here.” Will vowed. “If you still wanna run away after that then you’re taking me with you.”

“Definitely not.”

“It’s not optional.” Will glared. Nico stared at the son of Apollo in astonishment. Aside from Percy, nobody had ever fought so hard for him before. Nico knew that Grover and Annabeth would never have bothered looking for him, or at least not looking so hard, if Percy hadn’t asked them too. Percy had protected him by getting them not to tell anyone who his father was. Now Will was saying he’d run away from Camp if Nico did. He didn’t know what to do with that except to shake his head. Will didn’t belong on the streets. He belonged at Camp. Safe.

**“Any word on Luke?” I asked.**

**She shook her head.**

Hermes sighed. He supposed that no news was good news. But it also meant Kronos’ forces were probably up to something which would definitely not be good.

**I knew this was a touchy subject...I knew she still liked him.**

Annabeth groaned quietly to herself. It was just so confusing. Luke. Percy. Luke. Percy. She was hoping these books would be able to give her some answers. The biggest problem was that Luke was now possessed by Kronos and she had no idea how to stop Kronos without killing Luke.

**When we’d fought Luke...survived a fifty-foot fall off a cliff.**

Nico and Percy exchanged looks. They both suspected what Luke had done to allow him to survive that fall. But Percy wondered why he had been looking so sick during that quest. Luke had looked sickly, not full of life.

“You’ve survived worse.” Reyna pointed out.

“Yeah but I fell into water.” Percy reminded her. “I wouldn’t survive a fifty foot fall onto concrete.”

“I don’t know. You do have the strangest good fortune.” Triton mused. 

**Now, as far as I knew…we call this a “problem.”**

A few people chuckled at this.

“We call it a bit more than just a problem.” Beckendorf said, though he was grinning. 

“It’s pretty much a regular day for us.” Percy shrugged. The Greek demigods had to admit that was true. 

**“Mount Tam is still overrun...I think I would know if he was.”**

“How would you know that?” Athena asked her daughter.

“The same way I could sense he was alive.” Annabeth said. Athena frowned at her daughter. She did not like the bond that seemed to exist between her and the traitor. She might not approve of the sea spawn but at least he would be loyal to her and protect her daughter. The traitor had ordered her death on a couple of occasions. 

“Plus, wouldn’t the Princess Andromeda have been there?” Frank pointed out.

“Not necessarily but it would have been a likely indicator.” Annabeth nodded.

**That didn’t make me feel...I mean, with the search for Pan?”**

Hermes perked up.

**Annabeth fingered her bead necklace...But she didn’t explain.**

Hermes frowned. That didn’t sound promising. It certainly didn’t sound like they had had much luck. 

**As we headed through Brooklyn...I probably didn’t do a very good job.**

“You did ok. You got all the main points across.” Annabeth assured him.

“I don’t think my mom was too impressed.” Percy shrugged.

**I told my mom I was fine...And why had Kelli exploded into flames?**

“Why would a mortal be able to help with any of those questions?” Ares sneered.

“Rachel is different to most mortals.” Percy pointed out. “I thought she might know something.”

“Just because she can see through the Mist doesn’t mean she knows what is going on.” Athena stated. 

**I knew monsters never truly died...If she really was destroyed.**

“No. That was not being destroyed.” Artemis shook her head.

**The taxi exited on Route 25A...thick around as the tree itself.**

“Quite an intimidating defence.” Reyna murmured to herself. Not that she wanted to attack the Greeks, on the contrary she quite liked most of them, but it was good to know their defensive capabilities.

**Above his head, on the lowest branch...waiting for something bad to happen.**

“We hadn’t had much news of Kronos’ army since the winter. We knew he’d probably be attacking Camp soon.” Travis said.

“Yeah. No news was almost worse. Instead we just spent our time worrying about when the attack would come.” Connor agreed.

“Plus with what Clarisse had found out…” Will trailed off. They would find out soon enough.

“We haven’t had a chance to properly relax in years.” Chris said wistfully. He certainly hadn’t been relaxed that summer, he’d been insane.

**We walked down into the valley...A typical day at camp.**

“You kill a large orange sea serpent on a regular basis?” Hazel asked.

“Yeah. He’s pretty common. Hasn’t reformed since the last time we killed him though.” Katie said.

“He reforms pretty quickly. He will probably be back in a week or two.” Clarisse said, ignoring the fact that by the time the monster got back, they might all be dead and Kronos could have won.

**“I need to talk to Clarisse,”...She was a mean, ungrateful bully.**

“That’s not true.” Chris frowned unhappily.

“Yeah. It kind of is.” Connor told his brother. “You’re the only one that she’s actually half decent too.”

“Given her dad, can you blame her?” Travis asked his brother quietly.

“Yes.” Connor nodded. “Her dad sucks, I agree with that, but that doesn’t excuse her behavior towards pretty much all the campers.”

“It’s not like you guys are that nice to her.” Silena pointed out. 

“We prank everyone fairly.” Travis shrugged. “We don’t single out Clarisse unless she has done something to deserve it.” 

**Her dad, the war god...Other than that, she was just great.**

“Like you’re so great yourself, Prissy.” Clarisse scowled at him angrily. 

**“We’ve been working on something,”...talk to you before the hearing.”**

“Hearing?” Piper wondered. Grover grimaced.

“Yeah. You’ll see.” Annabeth told Piper grimly.

**“What hearing?”...“Great talking with you, too.”**

“And back to not answering my questions.” Percy sighed.

“Sorry, but speaking to Clarisse was important.” Annabeth said.

  
“I know but it wouldn’t have taken long to explain.” 

**As I made my way through camp...hot-wiring the camps SUV.**

Hermes grinned at his kids while Chiron and Dionysus glared at them.

“This is why you should not keep the SUV at Camp.” The Centaur told Dionysus.

“Wait, that is Mr D’s SUV?” Connor asked. 

“We thought it was the Camp one?”

“Mr D lets the Camp use it on occasion.” Chiron told them. 

**Silena Beauregard, the head counselor for Aphrodite...was the biggest hellhound I’d ever seen.**

“Why is there a Hellhound in the middle of your Camp?” Frank asked.

“She’s friendly.” Percy grinned. “Although I didn’t know that then.” 

**I mean, I’ve seen some pretty...I pulled out Riptide and uncapped it.**

“You tried to kill Mrs O’Leary?” Thalia asked.

“You named a hellhound Mrs O’Leary?” Reyna wondered, thinking the Greeks couldn’t get any stranger. Percy had a friendly Cyclops for a half brother and now a friendly hellhound? 

“We didn’t name her.” Percy explained. “But I kind of adopted her.”

“I think almost all of us have tried to kill her at some point.” Clarisse shrugged.

“I haven’t.” Silena stated.

“Well of course not.” Artemis rolled her eyes. “That would require fighting. You might break a nail.” Silena, Piper, Gwen and Aphrodite all scowled at the Goddess. Drew just rolled her eyes at their reaction. Why would you want to kill creatures if you didn’t have to? They just exploded, getting their stupid monster dust all over you, which totally ruined your hair. 

“Actually, I haven’t tried to kill her because I don’t just mindlessly slaughter anything I come across.” Silena snapped. “I met her owner and he explained she was friendly.”

“And you believed someone who told you a hellhound was friendly? The clue is kind of in the name.” Jason pointed out.

“Well, when Mrs O’Leary didn’t attack me, I figured he was telling the truth. She is really playful.” Silena told him.

**“Yaaaaah!” I charged...badly chewed target dummy toward the swordsman.**

“She just wants to play.” Piper smiled slightly. Yeah, it was weird but she was slowly getting used to the weird.

**“Good girl,” the man said...“Get the Greek! Get the Greek!”**

“Although, I’m not sure I appreciate him teaching her that particular command.” Will said.

“Me either.” Nico agreed.

**Mrs. O’Leary bounded after her...She began chewing on its helmet.**

“The Greeks are so weird.” Dakota muttered.

“Definitely.” Gwen nodded. Dionysus looked at his son with a slight smile.

**The swordsman smiled dryly...disappeared under his collar.**

Athena frowned. Something about the colour and location of that mark was familiar to her but she couldn’t place exactly why. 

**“Mrs. O’Leary is my pet,”...held out his hand. “Quintus.”**

“Fifth?” Jason frowned.

“What?” Piper asked.

“Quintus means fifth in Latin.” He explained. “Weird name for a Greek.” Annabeth and Percy both grimaced. Annabeth wished she had been able to have more time with her half brother. She was grateful for his laptop but to be able to discuss the ideas on it with Daedalus in person would have been incredible. 

**I shook his hand...Helping out Chiron while Mr. D is away.”**

“I get to be away from Camp?” Dionysus perked up.

“You must have been called away to help with the war effort.” Hermes stated.

“There are a lot of minor Gods and other immortals that will need to be visited. Make sure they are on our side.” Ares nodded. Zeus grumbled. It seemed that Hecate might already have joined his father. How many others? He would make them all suffer for their betrayal.

**“Oh.” I tried not to stare as Mrs. O’Leary...Even Dionysus must help out.**

“What does he mean, ‘even me’?” Dionysus glared at the book.

“That preparing for the war is even more important than watching over the kids?” Apollo suggested. Personally, he didn’t think that was true. If the first attack was going to be the Camp, one of the Gods should definitely be there. 

Dionysus grunted. He had a feeling that wasn’t what the stupid Qunitus guy had meant at all.

**He’s gone to visit some old friends…that was the best news I’d had all day.**

“The feeling is mutual.” Dionysus muttered.

**He was only our camp director...things must be looking pretty bad.**

The wine God glared at Percy but given their newfound, and very fragile, truce he decided not to comment.

**Off to my left...TRIPLE G RANCH FRAGILE THIS END UP**

“I hate that place.” Grover muttered.

“You’re not the one who had to...do what I did.” Percy reminded his friend. Grover pulled a face.

“Yeah. You have more cause to hate it.” Those around them looked a little confused. Percy recalled what Geryon had been doing to Apollo’s sacred cows. He winced. The God was  _ not _ going to like that.

**Along the bottom, in smaller letters...OR EXCRUCIATINGLY PAINFUL DEATHS.**

“That does not sound good.” Frank said nervously.

“It could have been worse.” Katie shrugged.

“Definitely.” Will nodded.

**“What’s in the boxes?” I asked...“excruciatingly painful death” part.**

“I would be worried about that too.” Hazel said. 

**Quintus threw the bronze shield...like this when I was a boy.”**

“What?” Piper asked. “How long has the Camp been around?” 

“A very long time.” Chiron said gravely.

“But Percy said the guy looked like he was in his fifties.” Leo pointed out. Nobody said anything so Rachel kept reading.

**“You—you’re a half-blood?”...an old demigod before.**

The Gods all winced at that. It was yet another reminder of the dangerous lives their children led. 

**Quintus chuckled...“I’ve heard a few things.”**

“It’s probably hard to be connected to our world and not have heard something about the prophecy.” Katie said.

“Besides, it’s not just those who are part of prophecies that die young.” Clarisse stated grimly. Everyone thought of those who had died that summer.

**I wanted to ask what few things...“Quintus, do you mind if I borrow Percy?”**

“If Chiron is uneasy then something is wrong.” Apollo mused.

“You will find out in due course.” Was all Chiron would say on the matter.

**“Not at all, Master Chiron.”**

Chiron frowned. He should have picked up on that. None of the demigods had called him ‘master’ in centuries.

**“No need to call me ‘Master’,” Chiron said, though he sounded sort of pleased.**

Everyone turned to look at the Centaur who was avoiding everyone’s gaze.

“Should we be calling you master?” Connor asked with an impish grin.

“No. No. There is no need for that.” Chiron assured him.

“Yes, Sir. Master Chiron, sir.” Travis saluted. Chiron glared at him.

**“Come, Percy. We have much to discuss.”...he apparently changed his mind.**

“What were you going to say?” Percy asked.

“I’m not sure.” Chiron admitted. “I wish I understood a lot of things.”

**“First things first, Percy...She simply escaped.**

“Any powerful monster?” Katie asked.

“No.” Apollo said. “Only certain ones.”

“So naturally those are the ones I meet.” Percy sighed.

“Yep. Sounds about right.” Triton nodded.

**It is not good that the...fallen under their spell and been devoured.”**

“I had some help.” Percy grinned.

“Naturally.” Rachel smirked.

**“I would’ve been,” I admitted...yet we owe her a debt.**

“We owe you another one after that summer.” Percy said.

“I’ll cash in eventually.” Rachel promised.

**What the empousa said...Council of Cloven Elders is meeting now to decide his fate.”**

“I hate those guys.” Percy grumbled.

“What do they mean, decide your fate?” Hermes asked anxiously. 

“You’ll find out.” Grover sighed.

“Stupid, useless council.” Clarisse growled. She hated those useless fools. 

**Chiron said we needed to hurry...into a glade blanketed with wildflowers.**

“There are always new things to discover about the Camp.” Connor grinned. He and the Hermes cabin loved exploring and finding these new places.

“Or old, forgotten places.” Leo put in, thinking of the Bunker Festus had taken him too. All of the older Greek campers turned to stare at him. So did Chiron.

“You found something at Camp?” Beckendorf asked his half brother with interest.

  
“Yeah. I’ll tell you later.” Leo promised.

**A bunch of satyrs were...I was taller than he was now.**

“And you’ve not let me forget it since.” Grover complained. 

**Standing off to one side...Usually she says hello by trying to kill me.**

“No, I was just distracted.” Clarisse muttered. She had certainly  _ not _ been in a good mood that summer. At least, not until Dionysus got back and cured Chris.

“Plus Chiron was there.” Chris pointed out, trying to cheer his girlfriend up.

“That too.” She agreed.

**Annabeth had her arm around...mouthed the words Grover’s girlfriend.**

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you had a girlfriend.” Percy pouted.

“There was a lot going on.” Grover protested.

“You could at least have mentioned it on our trip to Camp.” Percy turned to Annabeth.

“I was going to let Grover tell you.” She shrugged.

**At least I thought that’s what...couldn’t see past the next handful of goat chow.**

Everyone burst out laughing at that description. Chiron looked at Percy, trying for a disapproving expression but it was tinged with amusement.

“I love the way you think.” Nico said through his chuckles. 

**I wasn’t sure why Grover seemed so nervous.**

“Because they might look stupid but they still have power.” Grover sighed.

“I know that now.” Percy reminded his friend. “I still think my description fits though.” 

**Silenus tugged his yellow polo...you heard the wild god Pan speak.”**

“Why is that scandalous? I would have thought they would be pleased.” Jason frowned.

“The Council...well…”

“They didn’t like Grover.” Percy cut in angrily. “So they thought Pan wouldn’t bother to speak to him. They figured that if Pan ever revealed himself it would be to them.”

“Ridiculous.” Hermes said. “Pan would reveal himself to any he thought worthy. And my son does not look more favourably on those with seats of power.”

**“But I did!”...“Wrong fight, girlie,” Clarisse muttered. “Wait.”**

“Thanks.” Grover said. “I don’t think Juniper beating up the Council would help my case.”

“I like her.” Clarisse said. 

**I don’t know what surprised me more...have you found in six months of travel?”**

“But the search for Pan has been going on for centuries. What is six months compared to that?” Piper wondered.

“I think they thought that Grover had already had enough glory. He found both children of the Big Three. Actually he found four but nobody knew about the other two yet, plus something had gone wrong each time. He only got the license after completing a quest with Percy.” Annabeth explained. “So Grover was already unpopular with the Council.”

**“I just need more time,” Grover pleaded...“we will give you one more chance.”**

“Good.” Hermes nodded.

**Grover brightened. “Thank you!”**

**“One more week.”**

“What?” Hermes’ smile vanished. Grover was the best chance of finding his son. He needed to be given more time. “Dionysus, you need to speak with them. Make them let Grover keep searching.”

“I am not there.” Dionysus said, sounding regretful. He also thought that the Satyr was the best chance of finding his best friend. 

**“What? But sir! That’s impossible!”...Or tap dancing.”**

“Really, they think tap dancing would suit Grover?” Thalia asked with a snicker. “They have not seen him dance.”

**“But sir, I—I can’t lose my searcher’s license...“There is another option,” Clarisse said darkly.**

Grover grimaced. He still couldn’t believe Pan had hidden himself there. It made sense and yet it had been so horrible.

“What option?” Hermes asked.

“Not a good one.” Clarisse scowled.

**“No. No.” Juniper shook her head...that’s the way it worked.**

“Well, if you had just gotten to Camp your cabin shouldn’t be messy.” Silena pointed out.

“Yeah.” Percy grinned sheepishly. “But the Harpies don’t clean during the winter.”

“So your cabin had been a mess since the winter break?” Piper asked.

“Pretty much. They don’t inspect cabins when you aren’t there so nobody would have noticed. Not that they would have cleaned it if they had.” Percy said. 

**Every afternoon, one of the senior counselors... all around the cabin.**

“How do you live like that?” Reyna asked. The Romans were all very neat and tidy.

“Easily.” Percy shrugged.

“Men.” Artemis rolled her eyes.

**I raced toward the commons area...fresh flowers grow in their window boxes.**

Demeter and Katie both smiled.

“They do look amazing.” Travis whispered to Katie. She blushed a little but smiled at him.

“Daphne is the best at making the flowers grow.” She said.

“I’ve seen you growing the strawberries.” He grinned. “They are pretty awesome.” Her smile widened and then she suddenly narrowed her eyes at him.

“You were the one stealing all the strawberries a few weeks ago.” She said. Travis smirked.

“I wouldn’t dare.”

“Yes you would.” 

“Alright. Guilty. But how else am I supposed to tell you how amazing your strawberries are if I haven’t tried them?”

“You try them every year.” She reminded him, not falling for his flattery.

“And they get better every time.” Katie couldn’t stop the blush on her cheeks getting darker at his so she playfully shoved his shoulder and looked away.

**Just by snapping their fingers...but they still had a head start on me.**

“Hey! We aren’t slobs.” Connor protested.

“There just isn’t any space.” Chris added.

“Plus you guys steal each other's stuff and hide it.” Will pointed out.

**Over at the Aphrodite cabin...the worst inspector.**

“Hey!” Silena protested.

“You are a little over the top, sweetheart.” Beckendorf told her. 

“I am not.”

“You really are.” Clarisse told her friend. Silena huffed and folded her arms across her chest, pouting.

**She liked things to be pretty. I didn’t do “pretty.”**

“Nobody except Aphrodite cabin and Demeter cabin do ‘pretty’.” Will said.

“There is nothing wrong with your cabins looking nice.” Silena told them.

“True but the inspection is only supposed to be about neatness and cleanliness. Looking extra pretty isn’t the point.” Percy told her. Silena continued to pout.

**I could almost feel my arms...it always had a good breeze blowing through it.**

“Doesn’t that get cold?” Jason asked.

“No.” Percy smiled. “It’s awesome.” 

**I dashed inside, wondering...Tyson sweeping the floor.**

“Thanks for cleaning, Big Guy.” Percy grinned at Tyson.

“You’re welcome.” Tyson grinned back, happy he was able to help his brother out, even with something small like cleaning their cabin. “Anything to help my brother.” He added. He had missed Percy while he was away.

**“Percy!” he bellowed...it’ll wake you up quick.**

“I want to see that.” Leo laughed.

**“Hey, big guy!” I said. “Ow, watch the ribs. The ribs.”**

“Sorry.” Tyson frowned. “I hurt Percy?” 

“You just squeeze a little tight. I was fine.” Percy assured him.

**I managed to survive his bear hug...see Annabeth and make things go BOOM!”**

Everyone smiled at the Cyclop’s enthusiasm.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone describe quests and war so enthusiastically.” Hazel commented. 

“Honestly, it helps.” Percy said. “It’s hard to feel all doom and gloom with that kind of happiness.” Poseidon smiled at both of his children. He was glad that they were able to help each other and be there for each other. It may be an unconventional relationship but they were very good brothers.

**I hoped he didn’t mean all...flower bouquets the Demeter kids could whip up.**

“Hey!” Katie exclaimed, looking offended.

“Nothing is prettier than what you can create.” Travis assured her. She smiled at him gratefully.

  
“Tyson, you’re the best.” Percy told his brother. The cabin never looked as good as when Tyson came to visit. Sadly for him that wasn’t very often. Tyson gave him a toothy grin.

**“Tyson, the cabin looks...could make things so delicate.**

“It does sound wonderful.” Gwen sighed. While she was glad they didn’t separate people by their Godly parent at Camp Jupiter, it would be nice to be able to decorate your living space.

**Then I looked over at my bunk...Sea of Monsters were polished and gleaming.**

Percy smiled. 

**I looked at Tyson...She winked at me and left the room.**

Beckendorf raised an eyebrow at his girlfriend. She giggled and winked at him. 

Aphrodite smiled at her daughter. She was glad to see her interacting normally with the others again. Still, it worried her what might happen if the others found out about Silena’s former status as a spy. Aphrodite knew Zeus would go crazy. Not that she would let him harm Silena in any way but still. On the plus side, she knew Percy had been told about Silena and that he was on her side. If anyone could convince the others to accept her daughter after such a revelation, it was him.

**Tyson and I spent the afternoon...Beckendorf was impressed.**

“You totally need to come to the forges once this is all over.” Leo said. He really wanted to work with the cyclops at some point. He hoped that they would be able to save people, including his half brother so that he could have the chance to work with Beckendorf too. Plus, then he wouldn’t need to be the cabin counsellor. He totally got why Jake didn’t want the position.

“Yay.” Tyson clapped happily.

**While he worked, Tyson...Dad wanted us both at camp.**

Poseidon nodded. He would not want his children near the war for as long as possible. He knew it was unrealistic to think he could protect them from that forever, especially Percy, but he could try. He was their father and that was his job! Not to mention he knew that Percy would be needed at the surface, far more than he would underwater.

Triton sighed. He knew that a demigod as powerful as Percy would be a huge asset to their side but he also understood that if anything were to happen to Percy then they would be in even more trouble. Triton also knew that his dad wouldn’t want Tyson or Percy to fight. Heck, he even tried to keep Triton out of it when he could, despite the fact he was definitely old enough, and skilled enough, to fight any wars that came their way.

**“Lots of bad people above the sea, too,”...it would crush him.**

“Well, we have plenty of practise in sneaking off to do stuff.” Percy grinned at his friend. “We would have helped you search for Pan, license or not.” Annabeth nodded.

“Thanks guys.” Grover smiled. He was glad that hadn’t been necessary but he appreciated his friend’s support.

**“What’s this ‘other way’?”...“Goat boy scares me,” Tyson murmured.**

“You’re scared of a Faun...Satyr?” Reyna asked in confusion, looking between Tyson and Grover. She would understand Grover being frightened of Tyson but not the other way around. Honestly, she couldn’t imagine anyone being afraid of a Faun. 

  
“Not anymore.” Tyson grinned. “Goat boy is a friend.” 

**I stared at him. Tyson had...“And goat fur makes my nose itchy.”**

“That’s so weird.” Piper muttered. “I mean, Coach Hedge I could understand being afraid of, but not Grover.” Jason nodded. Coach Hedge was enough to frighten pretty much anyone when he wanted to.

**And that pretty much ended our...won with a sword at your throat.**

Ares nodded while Athena frowned. Definitely not a child of Ares then. In fact, it sounded similar to how her children fought. 

**“Good try,” he told me...like a quail or something.**

Athena gasped lightly. That simply wasn’t possible. Was it? No. It had to be something else. She was sure her daughter and Perseus would find out at some point. They always did.

**“What’s that on your neck?”...like he’d been branded.**

The wisdom Goddess nodded to herself. It was just too similar to be dismissed. 

**“A reminder.”...time for any more questions.**

“Well, he didn’t like that question.” Jason said.

“People don’t usually like Percy’s questions. I’m sure he’ll end up answering whether he likes it or not.” Thalia said.

  
“I don’t have magic powers.” Percy rolled his eyes. Thalia just smirked at him.

**While he and I fought...hit the showers and got ready for dinner.**

“That is weird. What kind of dude doesn’t sweat after a workout?” Leo frowned. 

“Another point towards him being suspicious.” Piper said.

**I was feeling good...but I was careful to step over it.**

Nico grimaced. “Sorry about that.”

“Why hasn’t that been fixed?” Katie wondered.

“We had bigger things to worry about.” Will shrugged.

“Plus, errr, it was an entrance to the Underworld. There will always be a mark to show that connection, even if that connection is no longer active.” Nico admitted sheepishly. 

“So we can’t use it to get to the Underworld? And the Underworld can’t use it to get to Camp?” Clarisse asked a little anxiously.

“No. No one except me anyway.” Nico said.

**“Big crack,” Tyson said...“So he put a crack in the floor?”**

“He makes it sound like I was throwing a tantrum.” Nico muttered.

“You kind of were.” Will told him with a smirk.

“I…” Nico started to argue and then realised he kind of had thrown a tantrum, “I had a legitimate reason.”

“Nobody is arguing that.” Will said.

**“These skeletons attacked us,”...“Titans might use him if they knew.”**

Nico grimaced. It really had been a bad idea to run off.

“You didn’t even know about the prophecy then.” Percy said, correctly guessing the direction of Nico’s thoughts. “You didn’t know why it was extra dangerous.”

**I stared at him. Sometimes it was easy...“Like the crack in the ground.”**

Tyson was pleased that Percy trusted him with important things.

**I had trouble falling asleep that night...I drifted off I’d have nightmares.**

“Not more Percy nightmares.” Katie grimaced.

“Not that night anyway.” Percy said. “Although what I saw wasn’t much better.” 

“If you didn’t have a nightmare, how did you see something?” Chris wondered. Percy just shrugged.

**See, for half-bloods...Please deposit one drachma.**

“What?” Connor asked.

“I don’t know how this happened.” Percy admitted. He knew it was Bianca somehow but he’d never heard of calls being made like this before. Or since.

**I looked over at Tyson...whatever you need to show me.”**

“Strange.” Poseidon frowned.

“That’s not even the strange part.” Percy told his dad.

**The mist shimmered...but he looked older.**

“Eleven by then.” Nico said.

**His hair had grown longer. It was shaggy and almost touched his shoulders.**

The son of Hades touched his hair with a frown. It was shorter now but could probably still use a cut.

**His eyes were dark...who’d been living on the streets.**

Leo grimaced in sympathy. He knew how sucky that was. 

Will looked at the son of Hades sitting beside him. He would not let this happen to him again. 

**I waited for him to look at me...But he didn’t seem to notice me.**

“If he hadn’t made contact before, why would he do it now?” Hazel wondered.

“It wasn’t Nico who called me.” Percy said.

“Then who? The title said it was the Underworld.”

“Ghosts sending Percy messages.” Connor chuckled. 

**I stayed quiet, not daring to move...I couldn’t see who was talking.**

“Please tell me you didn’t?” Hades looked at his son who was wearing a guilty expression.

“Yeah. I deeply regret it .” Nico admitted.

“What?” Zeus asked his brother.

“It’s a spirit.” Hades explained. “They always try to use and manipulate my children because they are the only ones who can understand them and help them escape the Underworld.”

“You helped a spirit escape the Underworld?” Zeus looked at Nico angrily.

“Did you not hear the part about him being a vulnerable eleven year old who had just had his sister die. He was being manipulated.” Percy scowled. He flashed an apologetic look at Nico who would hate being described as ‘vulnerable’ but it did apply here. 

**Nico stared across the river...Nico was camping at the edge of the river Styx.**

“If you were already in the Underworld, why not go to your dad?” Travis asked. Nico grimaced and said nothing. Hades looked at his son in concern. Did Nico not trust him? Had he done something?

**“I’ve failed,” he muttered. “There’s no way to get her back.”**

Hades narrowed his eyes. He really hoped his son was not thinking about doing something stupid. It would explain why Nico was not staying with him. He would never allow such a thing. He could only hope his son would not cross a line that it was very difficult to come back from.

**The other voice kept silent...“But there may be a way.”**

“Whatcha doing?” Will asked.

“Being stupid.” Nico sighed. He wondered what the Campers would think when they found out...what Will would think. Nico had never regretted letting Minos talk him into the idea as much as he did right now.

**“Tell me,” Nico commanded...“A soul for a soul.”**

“No!” Hades yelled at his son furiously. This was one of those things that crossed a line. A very dangerous line.

“I know.” Nico said weakly. 

“You were trying to trade someone’s life to get your sister back?” Will asked tentatively. Nico shrank away from the son of Apollo.

“I wanted to...yes.”

“Please tell me you did not go through with this?” Hades asked his son anxiously.

“No. I might have done but I was persuaded otherwise.” Nico glanced at Percy. Hades shot a grateful look at his nephew. At least someone was looking out for Nico.

“We will speak of this later.” Hades told his son. Nico nodded grimly. He was not looking forward to that talk. Especially as his dad had already given it to him before.

**“I’ve offered!”...Someone who has cheated death.”**

“Even then, I would not resurrect a soul. Being offered a soul that has escaped Thanatos just means it has finally met the end it should have originally met.” Hades stated. 

“What about an immortal life?” Percy asked out of curiosity.

Hades’ expression darkened. “Some immortals, like the Hunters, can still meet their end.” He said gravely, thinking of his daughter. “But that is their Fate and so they are still destined for the Underworld. They are not cheating death but they are still a soul I will likely claim at some point, no matter how long it takes. Other immortals, like us, do not have souls like mortals do. We cannot be destroyed or offered in such a trade.” Percy nodded.

**Nico’s face darkened. “Not that again. You’re talking about murder.”**

“At least he has not won you over completely.” Hades muttered.

**“I’m talking about justice,”...“You will learn differently as you get older.”**

“I should hope not.” Persephone said. “Two wrongs do not make a right.”

“Indeed they do not.” Hades agreed with his wife.

**Nico stared at the flames...she would help me.”**

“Your sister would not help you. She would know the full extent of the rules.” Hades said, more out of hope than certainty. However, Bianca had seemingly accepted her death. He hoped she would not want to be brought back at the cost of another life. 

“I know that now.” Nico sighed. 

**“I will help you,” the ghost promised...Do you want revenge for your sister or not?”**

“There is no revenge to be taken.” Hestia frowned.

“I know that now. Back then I didn’t.” Nico sighed.

“What maze?” Reyna asked. Clarisse scowled and nobody answered Reyna’s question.

**I didn’t like the ghost’s tone of voice...he got tons of other kids suspended.**

“Who was he?” Will asked.

“You’ll find out later.” Nico said.

**Nico turned from the fire so the ghost...The connection was broken.**

“Still doesn’t answer who sent Percy that call.” Beckendorf frowned.

“I found that out later.” Percy said.

**I stood in the middle of the cabin...Nico di Angelo would come looking for me.**

“Dramatic much.” Grover laughed.

  
“You weren’t after Percy, were you?” Will asked Nico.

“No. But I now get why he thought that.” Nico replied.

“Percy hasn’t cheated death though.” Annabeth frowned.

“I know, I wasn’t after him.”

“I thought that Nico might think I had cheated death by letting Bianca die. That it should have been me and so that counted as me having cheated death.” Percy explained.

“No. Cheating death is one who has outlived their natural lifetime.” Hades stated. “You have certainly been lucky to avoid death but you have not cheated it.” Percy nodded.

“Chapter’s done. That was a long one.” Rachel said.

  
“I think we are back to the beginning again. Which makes it my turn to read.” Chiron said. Rachel handed the book over.


	3. We Play Tag With Scorpions

“Why would you do that?” Jason asked.

“Training exercise.” Connor said. “It was quite good actually.”

“Speak for yourself.” Percy grumbled.

**The next morning there was...I slept right through the noise.**

“How did you manage that?” Will asked.

“I was tired.” Percy shrugged. “Plus I’m pretty sure Tyson’s snoring would have drowned out any noise outside.”

**The magical boundaries had kept the...it got the message and withdrew.**

“Well done guys.” Apollo smiled over at Will.

“I hate that thing.” Will complained, trying to take his mind away from his dead half brother. He missed Lee terribly and didn’t envy Michael the job of taking over as cabin leader. “Chasing a drakon at half three in the morning when you’re mostly asleep is not a good idea.”

  
“Nobody was hurt were they?” Apollo asked.

“No. Everyone was fine.” Will smiled though it was slightly strained.

**“It’s still out there,” Lee warned...More and more frequently.”**

“He was not wrong.” Clarisse muttered. They were up to an attack pretty much every day at the moment.

**The campers murmured among...We only had about eighty campers.**

“Woah.” Piper whispered.

“Wasn’t there a hundred like the summer before?” Gwen asked.

“Yeah.” Annabeth said grimly.

**Three years ago, when I’d started...Some had just disappeared.**

All of the Gods grimaced, each wondering how many children they had lost. And if they had even noticed. How many children had gone missing, or died while being unclaimed. 

“That’s horrible.” Reyna stated. The Greek Campers all nodded, looking grim.

**“This is a good reason for new...Nico, and Luke, and Grover’s problem…”**

Grover, Nico and Hermes all looked at Percy gratefully. He had so many problems of his own, they each appreciated that he considered praying to his father about their issues. 

Poseidon smiled at his son’s thoughtfulness. He was a bit sad that there wasn’t much he could do about any of the issues his son prayed to him about. But at least he felt comfortable enough to ask.

**There was so much to worry...but I headed back to the table.**

Nobody commented on how many issues faced Percy, considering he hadn’t even mentioned the prophecy which was a pretty big issue. 

**Once everyone was eating...“I will go…um…polish my fish ponies.”**

“I’m sorry I made you uncomfortable Tyson.” Grover said.

“Not your fault.” Tyson told him with a smile.

**He lumbered off...weird Iris-message I’d gotten?**

“No. I was just making conversation.” Chiron assured him.

**“I brought Grover over,”...then trotted out of the pavilion.”**

“Wow, subtle Chiron.” Travis laughed.

**“What’s he talking about?”...“He wants you to convince me,” he mumbled.**

“It might be easier to convince Grover if I knew what I was convincing him of.” Percy pointed out.

“I was sure Grover would explain.” Chiron replied.

“Convince him about what?” Dakota asked. Nobody answered.

**Somebody else slid...“The Labyrinth.”**

“The Labyrinth? You want Grover to look for my son in the Labyrinth?” Hermes frowned. “Why would Pan be there?”

“Well, the Labyrinth allows travel between long distances very quickly.” Annabeth pointed out. “Grover only had a week to find Pan.”

“Still, the Labyrinth is like the Lotus Casino or the Sea of Monsters. Time moves differently there. It might feel like you’ve only been there for a few hours and it could be minutes or days.” Poseidon stated.

“The Labyrinth is very dangerous.” Athena looked at her daughter in concern. She thought about Quintus and his sudden arrival around the time they were discussing the Labyrinth. Then she recalled that they had been doing something about the Labyrinth since the previous winter. She assumed this was what her daughter and Clarisse had been working on. Maybe they were not connected.

“We know but it was our only option.” Annabeth sighed.

**It was hard to concentrate...I mean right next to me.**

Aphrodite giggled gleefully while Percy sighed. He was growing used to the books revealing his thoughts but there were little details that simply did _not_ need to be in there. Why was this relevant to anything? He cursed his bad fortune.

**“You’re not supposed to be here,”...weren’t allowed to switch tables.**

Chiron raised an eyebrow at Annabeth who simply smiled and shrugged.

“I know it’s to prevent arguments and things but it still feels a bit unfair that you can’t talk to your friends during meals.” Hazel frowned. 

“Or your boyfriend or girlfriend.” Chris muttered. 

“Maybe we could trial being allowed to sit at different tables?” Katie suggested. Chiron considered. 

“I shall think about it.” The Centaur told them, cutting off Dionysus who had opened his mouth, most likely to tell them no.

**Satyrs were different...punishment was for switching tables.**

“Extra chores I think.” Connor said. It never really happened, nobody currently at Camp had ever seen it happen but the Stolls made it their business to know all the rules. How could they break them if they didn’t know what they were? Besides, Travis was particularly good at finding loopholes in obscure rules that got them off the hook several times.

**I’d never seen it happen...with magical grapevines or something,**

Dionysus nodded, looking like he thought that was the least he would have done.

**but Mr. D wasn’t here...Clarisse and I have been investigating.”**

“I hope you were being careful.” Athena looked at her daughter anxiously.

“We were taking every precaution.” Annabeth assured her. “We were well aware of how dangerous it could be.” She had to work hard to avoid glancing over at Chris.

**I shifted my weight, trying to think...is under some building in America.”**

“You thought the Labyrinth could fit under a single building?” Apollo asked in amusement.

“More like I thought the entrance would be under a building. Like I knew the Underworld was bigger than one building but the entrance was in L.A.” Percy explained. “Or how Olympus is huge but the entrance is in the Empire State Building.”

“The Labyrinth has many entrances.” Athena stated.

“That part I didn’t know.” Percy admitted.

**See? It only took me a few...I was feeling pretty proud of myself.**

Apollo started clapping sarcastically while Poseidon ruffled his son’s hair in amusement. Percy gave Apollo a shove that was so hard he slipped off the couch.

“Ow!” The god complained.

“You deserved it.” Percy told him unsympathetically. Apollo picked himself off the floor and sat back down, pouting at Percy.

**Annabeth rolled her eyes...“So…is the Labyrinth part of the Underworld?”**

“Good question but no, it’s not.” Triton smiled at his half brother.

  
“Annabeth explained.” Percy grinned back. He appreciated Triton not mocking him for his lack of knowledge.

**“No.” Annabeth frowned...I’m not sure.**

“There are.” Hades and Nico confirmed at the same time.

“Do not tell me you were using the Labyrinth too?” Hades looked at his son. 

“Err, yeah.” Nico admitted. Hades pinched his nose. Clearly he needed to have that talk with Nico at the next break. Not only about the rules of the Underworld and death but also on safety. He knew that being on the run was not safe but using the Labyrinth was more dangerous still. Maybe he should assign Nico a bodyguard?

**But the Underworld is way, way down...You can get anywhere through the Labyrinth.”**

“Potentially. But only if you know how to use it.” Silena said grimly.

“Theseus used string, right?” Piper tried to recall the myth.

“Yes. Ariadne’s string.” Katie nodded.

**“If you don’t get lost,” Grover muttered. “And die a horrible death.”**

“Well, you might die a horrible death searching above ground too.” Jason pointed out. 

“At least you know where you are.” Grover said. “If you get lost in the Labyrinth you could end up anyway with no way back except to try the Labyrinth again.”

**“Grover, there has to be a way.”...“He was driven insane. He didn’t die.”**

Chris flinched at how casually Annabeth said that. Hermes looked at his son in concern.

“Oh, that’s so much better.” Leo muttered sarcastically. 

“Actually it is. Insanity can be cured. Death can’t.” Dakota pointed out casually. 

**“Oh, joy.” Grover’s lower lip...about Clarisse and a crazy guy?”**

Clarisse glowered at Percy while he shot an apologetic look at Chris who was putting on a carefully expressionless facade.

**Annabeth glanced over toward...broken the rules to come sit next to me.**

Annabeth grinned while Aphrodite gave Percy a wink that made him go quite red. 

**“It was secret,” Annabeth agreed, “because she found Chris Rodriguez.”**

“What?” Hermes turned to look at his son, horror on his face. “You were insane?” Chris had never really gone into much detail on why he had come back to their side and Hermes thought he would rather have not known.

“Yeah.” Chris said in a quiet voice. “I don’t remember much, just being sent into the Labyrinth by Luke to scout. I went in with someone else. I think her name was Mary. I don’t remember what happened but I know she died. Horribly. Then everything was blurry until I woke up in the Big House. Clarisse found me and saved me. When he came back Mr D cured me.” He explained so only Hermes could hear.

Hermes felt his gut twist in both sadness and anger. Luke would know how dangerous the Labyrinth was and he still sent his own half brother in there with no preparation. Chris had had to witness horrors that nobody should, let alone a teenager. His heart broke for one son while he wanted to strangle the other. 

“I’m so sorry, Chris. I guess I owe Dionysus big time. And Clarisse obviously.” He shot the daughter of Ares, a grateful look to which she nodded stiffly. Then he moved so that he was on Chris’ other side and pulled him into a hug. It hurt even more than he was partly responsible. If he had just claimed his son then he might not have felt so abandoned that he followed Luke to the enemy side. That thought made him want to cry. Instead he just hugged Chris even tighter while he waved at Chiron to continue reading. 

**“The guy from the Hermes cabin?”...abandoned camp and joined the Titan Army.**

Chris twisted slightly so he could hide his face in his dad’s chest. He knew the other campers had forgiven him and avoided talking about his time of insanity. To hear it discussed so bluntly was both strange and horrible.

Clarisse continued to hold her boyfriend’s hand, wishing she could do more. Those who hadn’t known were doing a good job of not staring at Chris but she kept glaring around just in case. She hated feeling helpless.

**“Yeah,” Annabeth said...babbling about string.”**

“String? So Luke is looking for the string or he has it already?” Apollo wondered.

“He was looking for it. If he had it already we would have known.” Annabeth told him.

**“String,” I said...he hadn’t been a bad guy.**

Chris smiled against Hermes’ chest. He was glad that Percy still thought that. He had heard the whispers around Camp when he first recovered that he had deserved what he got. He knew a small group of Campers didn’t think Mr D should have cured him. Clarisse had gotten into quite a few fights when she heard similar things and over the past year Chris had seemingly proved his loyalty. The whispers had stopped, although that might be more out of fear of Clarisse than trust in him. He wasn’t sure.

**What could’ve driven him mad?...Daedalus, was a genius.**

Annabeth sighed. He certainly was a genius. It was a shame he had died but it had definitely been past his time. She should count herself lucky that she had been able to meet him. And even more lucky that he had given her his laptop.

**But the point is, the Labyrinth...Psychotic goat-killing monsters.”**

“Psychotic goat-killing monsters?” Thalia asked in amusement.

“Yes.” Grover nodded vigorously. 

“There were a lot of monsters.” Percy grimaced.

“Of course you went into the Labyrinth.” Poseidon groaned.

**“But not if you had Ariadne’s string,”...Luke get past our borders.**

All of the Greek campers grimaced. They wished that had really been true. The battle at Camp last year was still pretty fresh in their minds.

**Clarisse explored a little way into the tunnels, but…it was very dangerous.**

“You were alright?” Ares asked quietly. Clarisse nodded.

“It wasn’t fun but I was alright.”

**She had some close calls...I’m afraid it didn’t help much.**

“It wouldn’t. You need either the string or a clear sighted mortal.” Athena stated. “No amount of research on him will help to navigate the maze.”

Everyone except the Greek campers turned to look at Rachel who simply grinned.

**I don’t understand exactly...why he’s been impossible to find.”**

Hermes considered. It _did_ make some kind of sense. Nobody would expect the god of the wild to be found underground. Nor would Satyrs want to search underground, let alone the Labyrinth as was being proved by Grover.

**Grover shuddered. “Satyrs hate going...No coffee shops!”**

“I don’t think that having no coffee shops is one of the pressing issues.” Katie said with a laugh.

“Pan had contacted Grover when he was drinking coffee so I think Grover got a bit fixated.” Percy grinned.

**“But,” Annabeth said...if you can make the Labyrinth work for you—”**

“You don’t make the Labyrinth do anything, let alone work _for_ you.” Athena warned her daughter.

“Even with the string, it’s no guarantee.” Artemis agreed.

“Plus, even if you can make your way through the Labyrinth, there is still the issue of all the monsters.” Triton muttered.

**“It could lead you to the wild god,”...One week or you learn to tap dance!”**

“So how’s your tap dancing abilities?” Jason asked in amusement.

“Still atrocious.” Grover grinned.

**Over at the head table...sitting at my table so long.**

Chiron nodded. A very brief conversation was one thing but they had been talking for a while.

**“We’ll talk later,”... I’ll have to start a puppet theater.”**

“You’re braver than you give yourself credit for.” Thalia told the Satyr.

“Definitely.” Percy added.

**“Don’t say that!......Do you really think I could…”**

“I believe you can do anything you want to.” Percy stated firmly.

“Thanks, Perc.” Grover smiled gratefully.

**His voice faltered...Grover was terrified of the big guy.**

Tyson frowned unhappily.

**“I have to leave,”...she finds cowards attractive.”**

“You’re not a coward.” Thalia frowned.

“Just think about what you’ve achieved.” Annabeth reminded him. “You’re the furthest thing from being a coward.”

**After he was gone...Ya bring me some sugar cubes?**

“Those are not good for Pegasi.” Silena frowned. Percy grinned sheepishly.

“A few of them won’t hurt him.” He said. She gave him a disapproving look.

**“You know those aren’t good for you…I smiled and fed him a handful.**

“Of course you did.” Poseidon chuckled.

“Blackjack has been a good friend.” Percy shrugged.

“He has indeed.” His dad agreed.

**Blackjack and I went back...You’ll end up in the glue factory!**

“The glue factory?” Piper asked.

“No idea.” Percy shrugged. 

**“You may be right, Blackjack...we’ll stampede anybody for ya!**

“He’s certainly enthusiastic about stampeding people.” Reyna noted in amusement.

“Yeah.” Percy nodded.

“Are all Pegasi like that?” Hazel asked curiously.

“No. Or at least, not to the same extent as Blackjack.” Percy grinned. “He’s pretty bloodthirsty for a Pegasi. And very competitive too.”

**I told him I’d keep it in mind...Blackjack for a long time.**

“There you go again with your ominous bad feelings.” Apollo noted.

“Well something bad is usually about to happen.” Percy shrugged.

“True but your feelings are pretty specific. Like not seeing your cabin for a while, or not seeing Blackjack.” The god pointed out. 

**That night after dinner...made him look like a ghost.**

Annabeth frowned. Another weird observation by Percy. First he had thought the torchlight made Luke look evil and then he turned out to be evil. Now he thought Quintus looked like a ghost and it turned out, not only did he die but he really should have been a ghost by then. She would have to take it up with Apollo at some point.

**Mrs. O’Leary bounded happily...and stay alive.”**

“I’d have thought that part was obvious.” Leo muttered.

“That sounds pretty cool.” Reyna said thoughtfully.

“Yeah, it was good fun.” Connor nodded.

**The crowd started murmuring excitedly...which Beckendorf looked pretty happy about.**

Silena and Beckendorf exchanged grins.

**The Stoll brothers, Travis and Connor, would be together.**

The Stolls high fived happily. They had been very pleased to be picked together.

**No surprise. They did everything together…they would be a tough combo to beat.**

“Provided they stopped arguing long enough to get anything done.” Will laughed, once again trying to ignore the pang of sadness he felt at the mention of his half brother.

“Lee’s alright. It’s Michael who gets on my nerves.” Clarisse grunted. She felt that Lee had been a much better cabin leader.

**Quintus kept rattling off the...and she redid my straps for me.**

Thalia laughed while Percy rolled his eyes. He didn’t know why he had expected anything else. 

**“Grover Underwood,” Quintus said, “with Tyson.”**

“That’s an unfortunate pairing.” Gwen said.

“Yeah.” Grover sighed. Still, it had helped him to get used to Tyson. Between that and the Labyrinth they had become, if not close, then at least not terrified of each other.

**Grover just about jumped...chewing nervously on his wooden club.**

“Don’t eat your weapon.” Ares growled. 

**“They’ll be fine,” Annabeth said...Annabeth and I found tracks almost immediately**

“Of course you did.” Poseidon grumbled. He knew it was for training and that Annabeth was with Percy but it didn’t do much to settle his nerves. Knowing his son’s luck he’d probably find all the monsters at once.

**—scuttling marks made by something...they were about as stealthy as buffaloes.**

The Stolls both blushed as their dad raised an eyebrow in their direction.

“You two can be as quiet as mice when you want to.” Chris frowned, raising his head to look at his half brothers.

“Travis had upset Katie who cursed us so the plants kept grabbing our feet and making us trip.” Connor explained with a glare in his brother’s direction. Demeter smiled smugly at her daughter 

**Once the Stolls had passed...It left a bitter taste in my mouth.**

“At least we know why we never found him. We weren’t exactly looking in the underworld.” Annabeth said with a regretful sigh.

“Although that would have been a pretty obvious place to look for a son of Hades.” Percy pointed out.

**“I saw him last night,” I said...That’s not good.”**

“No. It is not.” Hades looked at his son sternly.

“I know. I know.” Nico groaned.

**“The ghost was giving him bad advice,”...And they resent the living.”**

Nico made a face, expecting his dad to tell him that even Annabeth knew what he was doing was stupid and not to trust the ghost. Thankfully, Hades contented himself with a pointed expression to which Nico nodded.

**“He’s going to come after me,” I said.**

“You’re so big headed. Not everything is about you.” Nico teased Percy.

“Of course it is. I’m fabulous.” Percy replied with a smirk.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Nico scoffed.

**“The spirit mentioned a maze.”...“No, wait,” I said. “Behind us.”**

“Don’t tell me you found more than one?” Apollo groaned.

“Okay. We didn’t find more than one.” Percy said unconvincingly. Poseidon and Apollo both sighed in resignation. At least they knew he was alright.

**It was weird. Scuttling noises...“Dryads don’t like sharp blades, okay?”**

“Demigods don’t like being startled.” Clarisse scowled.

“Yeah. You’d think she’d know that from living at Camp.” Katie frowned.

**“Juniper,” Annabeth exhaled...I felt kind of stupid.**

A few people chuckled good naturedly. Honestly it was a good thing Percy had his stupid moments. It was good for relieving the tension.

**I’d been hanging around dryads...“We’re not busy,” Annabeth said.**

“You’ve just heard scuttling from several different directions.” Artemis pointed out.

“Yes. Now is not the time to stop and chat.” Poseidon agreed.

**“What’s wrong, Juniper?”...he was seeing another tree.”**

“No!” Grover cried. “I wouldn’t do that.” 

“We know, Grover.” Annabeth assured him. “That’s what we told Juniper.”

**“No,” Annabeth said as Juniper...blueberry bush once,” Juniper said miserably.**

“He also had a crush on Artemis and all the Hunters. It doesn’t mean anything.” Percy smirked at his friend who turned red.

**“Juniper,” Annabeth said...she went poof into green mist.**

“Well, that’s easy for her then.” Reyna laughed.

“Yeah. And easy for Annabeth.” Percy grumbled.

“I wouldn’t have left you to fight them alone.” Annabeth frowned at him.

“I know.” He said simply.

**Annabeth and I turned... “You’ve got the invisibility hat.”**

Poseidon bit back yet another groan. Of course his son would volunteer for the most dangerous job.

**She nodded. We’d fought together...scorpions appeared from the woods.**

“Three?” Apollo asked in concern.

“Half of the scorpions ended up finding you?” Leo wondered. “That’s pretty unlikely given the size of the woods.”

“That’s Percy’s luck for you.” Annabeth sighed.

**“Three?” Annabeth said...Three? Doubtful.**

“In a way it was a good thing.” Percy said. “Given what we found.” 

“But Juniper already knew. We didn’t need to get attacked by three of them to find it.” Annabeth reminded him. He shrugged.

**The scorpions scurried toward us...to keep that up for very long.**

Poseidon and Apollo both leant towards Percy ever so slightly, sandwiching him between the two of them. Thalia gripped Annabeth’s hand tightly.

**I took another step sideways...“In there? It’s too narrow.”**

“At least it’s something. Better than being scorpion chow.” Chris pointed out.

**“I’ll cover you. Go!”...that seemed to be made of bricks.**

“What?” Reyna frowned. “Is there a cave in the woods? Surely someone would have seen it?” 

“Not in the entrance was so narrow people dismissed it.” Frank guessed.

**I lifted Riptide. The faint glow of the blade...I was sure of it.**

“Or not.” Frank corrected himself.

**It was like the ground had...wondered if the same thing had happened to us.**

“No. Nico did that.” Katie pointed out.

  
“And Nico had disappeared into the woods before he disappeared.” Percy reminded her. She nodded.

**I lifted my sword again for light...more dangerous somehow.**

“Oh.” Athena’s eyes widened. “That is not good.”

“The Labyrinth has an entrance inside the Camp.” Hermes whispered in horror. All of the gods shot each other worried looks. If Luke got his army inside the Camp then it would not be good. How many Campers would die. How many of their _children_ would die? 

**I started forward, but Annabeth stopped...stretch endlessly in both directions.**

“That’s not good.” Poseidon bit his lip. His son was unprepared to be in the maze. It was dangerous enough in the best of circumstances, which these were not. At least Annabeth was there.

**Annabeth’s hand slipped into mine...as if that was supposed to make sense.**

“Sorry.” Annabeth said.

“Don’t worry. You found it pretty quickly.” Percy shrugged.

**“Uh, okay. What kind of—”...night sky, stars blazing.**

“Night sky? You went in during the afternoon?” Leo frowned.

“Time moves differently in the maze.” Percy said grimly. “At least we came out the same day we went in.”

**It was a lot darker than...“Where have you two been?” Clarisse demanded.**

“Careful, someone might think you were worried for them.” Thalia teased. Clarisse scowled.

“We were all worried. They had been gone for an hour. We thought the scorpions might have killed them.” Beckendorf said. That had been a terrible time and it had felt longer than one hour. They thought that the two of their Camp leaders might have died, not to mention the child of the prophecy.

**“We’ve been looking forever.”...but a Cyclops sat on me.”**

The room rang with laughter as Tyson looked embarrassed.

**“Was an accident!”...“I—Yeah. Yeah, we did.”**

“At least they know it’s there.” Apollo reasoned anxiously. “They can be prepared.” A few of the gods nodded but none of them relaxed at all. 

**A bunch of campers started...giving me suspicious looks.**

“Why give Percy suspicious looks? Annabeth was there too.” Poseidon frowned around at the other campers. 

**“This explains a lot,”...straight into the heart of the camp.”**

“The chapter is done.” Chiron announced heavily. “These have been quite long so let us stop for lunch.” Everyone nodded.

Hades grabbed Nico before he could leave. Nico sighed but followed his father to his temporary quarters. 

“Son…” Hades began.

“You already gave me this talk.” Nico told him. “You found out at the end of summer and grounded me for three weeks.” Hades nodded. At least he had found out.

“Now, you said that you had offered your own soul in exchange for Bianca’s. Did you really think I would accept that? That I would want you dead?” Hades asked, looking grave. He suddenly had even more sympathy for Poseidon. Nico sighed.

“You...I always thought you preferred Bianca to me.” Nico admitted quietly. 

“What?” Hades frowned. “I’m sure that’s not true.”

“That’s the feeling I always got. Obviously not here but in my time.” 

“And how do you think your sister would feel if she came back to life at the cost of your life?”

“At least she would be alive.” Nico muttered.

“That’s very selfish of you.” Hades told his son. “You would want Bianca to have to live with the guilt of knowing her brother died to bring her back? How would you feel if you had been the one who died and Bianca sacrificed her life to bring you back?”

“Horrible.” Nico said instantly. “But that’s different.”

“No it isn’t. Do you want to die?”

No.” Nico said firmly. Hades let out a sigh of relief. He could tell his son wasn’t lying. He nodded. They continued discussing the rules of the Underworld and afterlife for about another half an hour. It wasn’t really a lecture but Hades simply making sure he had been thorough enough with his future explanation.

****************************

Apollo finally peeled himself away from Percy’s side to grab Will while Nico was also occupied. He took his son aside and pulled out a fairly plain golden tool belt. Will frowned at it in confusion.

“This is for you.” Apollo grinned. “It’s a magical tool belt. It has a temperature controlled pocket, you set what temperature you need it to remain at. It will stay that way until you change the temperature again. There is a pocket with preservation magic on it. You can put any food in there and it will remain perfectly fresh and edible for up to six months. The other compartments are for various medical supplies and the pockets are magically enlarged. I’ve already put a few things in that you will likely need in the upcoming war. It’s also keyed to only open for you unless you give express permission.”

Will looked at the belt in awe. That was completely amazing. It was certainly the best gift he could ever remember getting in his life. It was both thoughtful and practical which he appreciated. It also showed that his dad knew which aspect of his that Will most favoured.

“Wow. Thanks, dad. This is incredible.” Apollo’s smile grew. He was just thrilled that Will liked it. Will took the belt reverently and then immediately began looking through the things his dad had put in. Most of it was just general medical supplies but there was a decent stock of nectar and ambrosia as well as some supplies that had been specially blessed by Apollo himself.

They went back to Apollo’s quarters to discuss the different uses of various medical items. Apollo had lunch delivered so Will didn’t miss out on food. 

****************************

Hermes sat with Chris in the corner of the dining hall. The Stolls sat nearby, not close enough to listen but close enough to prevent people bothering them. Clarisse also hovered around, alternating between glaring at the room and watching Chris anxiously.

“Are you ok? No lasting effects or anything?” Hermes asked his son nervously.

“No. Mr D did a good job of curing me.” Chris assured him.

“Good, good.” Hermes mumbled. Then he closed his eyes for a few seconds before looking back at his son. “Chris, I am so sorry. If I had been a better dad you would have never been in that situation.”

  
“Dad, don’t.” Chris said with a small smile. “Playing the what if game doesn’t help anyone. Yeah, maybe if I’d been claimed I might not have gone with Luke but I still might. Luke can be pretty persuasive when he wants to be and it made sense at the time.”

“Still, I’m sorry for being a crappy father.”

“You’re doing a pretty good job here.” Chris’ smile grew wider and a lot more genuine. Hermes finally smiled in return. He thought Chris was being a bit generous with his assessment but he wasn’t going to argue. 

“We’d better let the others come over before your girlfriend gets too edgy and attacks someone for looking at you wrong.” Hermes chuckled. Chris grinned knowing that was actually pretty likely. They called the Stolls and Clarisse over to join them. Katie also came over shortly afterwards. The group spent the rest of lunch chatting about much nicer topics.

After about an hour the group headed back to the throne room. Everyone took their seats and Beckendorf picked up the book. He made sure everyone was settled before finding the correct page and reading out the title.

  
  



	4. Annabeth Breaks the Rules

Athena sent a stern glance towards her daughter.

“What did you do?”

“Nothing that bad, mother.” Annabeth assured her. “It was necessary.”

**Chiron had insisted we talk...Sleep tight!**

“Yeah, that would make it hard to sleep.” Jason agreed.

“I don’t think many of us slept well.” Beckendorf stated.

“Yeah, we had to spend half the night reassuring the younger campers.” Travis put in. “Someone overheard you say there was an invasion route into camp.” 

Chiron winced. “I had not intended for the younger campers to know.”

“I think only Hermes kids did.” Connor said.

“No, one of the Hermes kids told David.” Will told him. “But Lee made sure we didn’t tell anyone else.”

“That explains why so many more kids came to me asking to make their own weapons.” Beckendorf said thoughtfully.

**It was hard to fall asleep...His lips were bloody.**

“Is this..?” Annabeth frowned at Percy.

“Yeah.” He nodded. 

“You seem to dream of the past a lot.” She noted. 

“Lucky me.” He muttered sarcastically.

**The boy took the old man’s head…His eyes glittered cruelly.**

Nico grumbled angrily under his breath. He hated Minos. He certainly should never have listened to him.

**“You helped the Athenian...the old man croaked.**

“You’re seeing Daedalus?” Leo asked eagerly. 

“Yeah.” Percy said. 

“That’s so cool.” Leo grinned. He wished he could dream of cool stuff like that. All he got were dreams of dirt face herself. Or his Tia Callida which was equally disturbing really. Especially now he knew who that was.

**A guard planted a kick...You will be mine!”**

“It already has you.” Nico spat under his breath. Will looked at him in concern but he shook his head.

**“I don’t fear you,” the old man groaned...it will be on him!”**

“That’s horrible.” Piper gasped.

“Yeah. Minos wasn’t the nicest guy around.” Percy told her.

“You met him?” Poseidon raised an eyebrow.

“I dreamt of him enough.” Percy explained. He left out the part where he had also seen his ghost.

**The king swept out of the...was a gruesome sight with his bloody mouth.**

Silena, Gwen and Piper all wrinkled their nose.

**“Take heart, my son.”...life-size squeaky pink rubber yak.**

Most people chuckled at that image.

“It was a little bit distracting.” Travis said.

“But kind of hilarious too.” Connor smirked.

**Chiron and Quintus stood...our hundred-eyed security chief.**

Hera smiled at the mention of Argus. Piper shuddered a little, still not used to the sight of Argus around camp.

**That’s how I knew it was serious...hard his whole body turned bloodshot.**

“That’s just weird.” Katie said.

“And creepy.” Silena agreed.

“It was odd to look at.” Annabeth nodded.

**“Luke must have known...I heard a little pride in her voice,**

Annabeth went red as a few people turned to look at her incredulously. She cursed Percy’s observational skills once more.

  
“What? It is impressive to know so much about camp.” She defended.

“You still respect the dude who has tried to kill you and your friends several times?” Jason asked in bewilderment.

“I respected the friend he was before.” Annabeth said though she didn’t sound particularly convincing.

**like she still respected the guy...Luke used to use it.”**

“That explains how he got out of Camp when he officially left. After he attacked Percy with the scorpion.” Triton nodded.

“Didn’t he use his sword to disappear in some black mist or something?” Connor frowned, trying to remember.

“Yeah but I’m not sure that would actually have gotten him out of Camp. Those borders are supposed to be magical.” Silena pointed out. 

“But the borders are mainly to stop things getting in, not out.” Beckendorf argued.

“Regardless, Luke has used the maze before. But does that not mean he already has a way to navigate it?” Apollo asked.

“Clearly not. I guess he just went for the nearest exit he could find and dealt with wherever he came out. Had some of his monsters pick him up or something.” Percy shrugged.

**Silena Beauregard frowned...and you didn’t say anything?”**

“She probably didn’t know it was a Labyrinth entrance. It looks like a regular cave.” Piper said.

“Still, she saw Luke disappearing into a random cave several times and didn’t think it was worth mentioning?” Reyna said sceptically.

**Juniper’s face turned green...“She has good taste,” Grover said.**

Grover grimaced slightly as he recalled that Junpier had also had a crush on Luke. He wondered if any of the female population at Camp had not had a crush on him.

**“I wouldn’t have paid any...She blushed a little greener.**

“Really?” Leo asked as Hermes hid a smile. 

“Yeah. Almost the entire female population had a crush on Luke at some point.” Percy huffed. Silena grimaced at the reminder of what she had been doing because she had liked Luke too.

“Some of the guys too.” Will added. 

**Grover huffed. “Forget what I said about good taste.”**

Quite a few people nodded at this. 

**“Interesting,” Quintus polished his sword...because we found one.”**

Now Chris grimaced. It was weird being talked about by Chiron and the other Campers. Hermes tightened his grip on Chris’ shoulders. Clarisse glared at anyone who looked in their direction.

**“Chris Rodriguez,” Chiron said...Yes, I understand.”**

Clarisse took a few deep breaths as she recalled Chris being in the basement. It had been so horrible. Chris squeezed her hand. However horrible it had been for him, he didn’t remember most of it now. His insanity was nothing more than a blur. Clarisse had had to see him everyday and be unable to really help. She had to watch out for him and try to nurse him back to health while watching him be insane. He admired her strength but he also felt bad that she had to go through that.

**“The one in the what?” I asked...the greatest inventor of all time.**

“Well, I mean, he’s great and all but Archimedes is the best.” Leo put in.

“That is  _ not _ true.” Annabeth argued.

“Of course it is. He was a true genius.”

“Keep reading. They’ll be here for hours.” Percy begged. Beckendorf smirked.

“For the record, Leo is right.” He said before starting to read so Annabeth couldn’t respond. She glared at him.

**If the legends are true...First to Camp Half-Blood to wipe us out.**

“We shall have to look into a way to destroy this entrance.” Ares said. 

“We have already tried.” Clarisse told them.

“Yes but  _ we _ haven’t.” Hermes put in, siding with Ares.

“It’s at least worth some experimentation.” Poseidon agreed.

**Then…to Olympus.”...SQUEAK! SQUEAK!**

A few people chuckled despite the gravity of the situation.

**Finally Beckendorf put his...Isn’t Daedalus dead?”**

“He’d have to be. He lived centuries ago.” Reyna frowned. 

“Not necessarily. There are ways around it.” Annabeth told her. “Namely magic but a few others as well.”

**Quintus grunted...are many disturbing rumors about Daedalus,**

Athena grimaced. She definitely hoped most of those rumours about her son were not true. 

**but one is that he disappeared...much less three thousand years.**

“Appearances can be deceptive.” Piper said.

“Yeah but I figured in a dream he didn’t know I was watching it would be hard to deliberately deceive me.” Percy shrugged.

“True but he might have been deceiving people at the time.” Jason pointed out.

**“We need to go in,” Annabeth announced...“I’ll get the dynamite!”**

“Do we have some at camp?” Connor asked excitedly.

“No. I was being sarcastic.” Grover rolled his eyes.

“Aww.” Travis pouted.

“No dynamite.” Chiron stated firmly. Even Hermes had to agree with the centaur on that one.

**“It’s not so easy, stupid,”...It didn’t go well.”**

“The fact that you did try it means it wasn’t a stupid question.” Katie pointed out to Clarisse. “Obviously you thought the same thing and Percy hasn’t been studying the Labyrinth for months like you and Annabeth.”

“Whatever.” Clarisse scoffed while Percy shot a grateful look at Katie who smiled back. She sympathised with Clarisse, this wasn’t an easy time given what was going on with Chris but she didn’t didn’t appreciate her taking out her anger on innocent people.

**Annabeth nodded...“We could fight,” Lee Fletcher said.**

All of the Greek campers looked down, desperately trying not to give anything away.

“Yeah, the Hephaestus cabin can set up some mean trps.” Leo grinned. Beckendorf gave his half brother a strained smile.

“Of course we can.” He agreed. Piper frowned, noticing the tone but Leo just began planning some traps of his own.

**“We know where the entrance is now...we may not have the strength to defeat them.”**

All of the gods looked very worried by this news. They had heard how camp numbers had been steadily going down and now there could be a fight at the Camp? There  _ was _ going to be a fight at the camp if the reactions of the children were anything to go by. Each of them was wondering how many of their children would die if it came to a fight. Clearly those here had survived so Camp hadn’t been overrun. Maybe that meant they had successfully stopped Luke.

**Nobody looked real happy...that wasn’t good.**

Chiron sighed and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He hadn’t wished to make them feel so hopeless already but given the reality of the situation they had been facing there wasn’t much choice. Had he downplayed how serious it was they would have been unprepared for what was to come.

**“We have to get to...Daedalus’s Labyrinth better than anybody.”**

“Reading about it will not be enough.” Athena warned her daughter. “It will not obey you through sheer force of will.”

“I know.” Annabeth sighed, feeling a little bitter. SHe had studied the Labyrinth for a lifetime and a single clear sighted mortal could just stroll in and know exactly which way to go.

**“From reading about it.”...“That’s not enough.”**

“It’s all we had.” Annabeth pointed out.

“Yeah. I know.” Percy sighed.

**“It has to be!”...“Are you going to help me or not?”**

“Of course. Ridiculous missions that should have no chance of success are my specialty.” Percy grinned. Poseidon grimaced. 

**I realized everyone was watching...Clarisse said. “Annabeth.”**

“My daughter.” Athena said, looking worried.

“I had studied the Labyrinth all my life. It had to be me.” Annabeth told her. Athena nodded, she knew her daughter would be a good choice but the Labyrinth had already driven at least one demigod insane. Obviously her daughter was here and sane but that didn’t mean nothing had happened in between. The Hermes boy was fine now too.

**There was a murmur of agreement...“I’m not going back in there.”**

Ares looked at his daughter. He supposed that watching your boyfriend be crazy was an incentive not to go back but she should know better than to show she was scared. 

**Travis Stoll laughed...Clarisse, chicken?”**

“How dare you!” Clarisse yelled, having been unable to let him have it last time, being too worried for Chris. She stood up and Chris made no effort to stop her. Travis edged away, trying to hide behind Connor.

“Not cool, Travis.” Chris told his brother, looking disappointed. 

“Look, I’m sorry.” He looked guiltily at Chris. “I was just trying to wind Clarisse up because she’s such a pain in the backside all the time. I definitely don’t blame her for not wanting to go in there.” 

“It was neither the time nor the topic to be joking about.” Chiron told Travis who nodded.

“You are going to pay for that.” Clarisse swore before sitting back down. “Read.” She demanded and Beckendorf complied.

**Clarisse got to her feet...I’m never going in there again. Never!”**

Clarisse glowered at the floor while Chris wrapped his arms around her and moved so she was leaning against his chest. Ares scowled at Travis.

**She stormed out of the arena...I wasn’t sure anyone else noticed.**

“I did.” Annabeth said.

“Of course.” Percy grinned.

**“Very well,” Chiron turned to Annabeth...I still had nightmares about that.**

“Me too.” Thalia nodded. “It was so creepy.”

“Thank goodness it’s never done it again.” Katie agreed. 

“Yeah. I was happy having never seen the thing.” Silena said.

**I’d never felt threatened...who’d seen visions so real they died of fear.**

“How often does that actually happen?” Leo asked warily. “You mention it every time someone goes to see the weird mummy but I’ve never heard of it actually happening.”

“The last time someone was driven insane was about twenty one years ago in our time.” Chiron said gravely. “Before that it was about seventy years ago.” Apollo winced as he remembered that one. However he was a bit apprehensive about the news that someone else would go insane in the relatively near future. 

**I paced the arena, waiting...put those in your shopping cart.**

“They are actually relatively easy to get hold of.” Percy smiled. “Pretty expensive though.” 

**Chiron was deep in conversation...Tyson had made out of armor scraps.**

“Hey, do you guys think you could make some more of those?” Connor looked over at Tyson, Beckendorf and Leo. “Then we could have some races in our time off.” The three considered.

“Yeah, we should be able to make a few.” 

“Wicked.” Percy grinned. Leo immediately began sketching some plans for mini chariots. Tyson went to sit next to him and they quietly discussed ideas.

**I gave up on pacing and left the arena...“He was poking around the rocks.”**

“So he also knew about the entrance.” Athena frowned.

“He is looking more and more suspicious.” Ares agreed.

“You don’t think he’s a spy sent by Luke?” Hermes asked tentatively.

  
“That would make sense.” Apollo nodded, shooting his brother a sympathetic look.

**My stomach clenched. “Quintus? When?”...when he first showed up.”**

“So he definitely knew before you guys found it and he didn’t bother to mention anything? Not good.” Reyna said. 

**“What was he doing? Did he go in?”...Don’t trust that man!”**

Annabeth sighed. He had done a lot of good in the end by dying and destroying the Labyrinth at the same time.

**She ran into the arena...but Mr. D was still away.**

“It’s not going to go any quicker with you going to find her.” Katie pointed out.

“I know. I just hate doing nothing.”

“You should have gone to tell Chiron about what Juniper said.”

“I figured Chiron already knew he was suspicious given our conversation.” Percy shrugged.

**I walked down the hallway...And it was coming from below me.**

“You didn’t?” Clarisse asked, looking murderous.

“What did he do now?” Ares asked angrily.

“Stuck his nose where it didn’t belong.” She replied through gritted teeth.

**I crept around the back of the stairs...saw two figures in the far corner,**

“JACKSON!” Clarisse roared. She jumped out of Chris’ arms and lunged towards Percy. He dodged out of the way. “YOU CAN’T JUST MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS CAN YOU?” She reached for her weapon before realising they didn’t have them in the throne room. Letting out a growl of frustration, she grabbed an empty drinks can and lobbed it at him. Percy ducked in time and it clattered harmlessly to the floor. This just enraged Clarisse further. 

“Clarisse.” Chris called wearily.

“No. This is the second time he’s eavesdropped for no damn good reason.” She scowled, still chasing Percy. Finally Chris stood up. He grabbed his girlfriend’s arm. 

“Come on. We’re going outside to sort this out. Percy, you too. You guys keep reading.” Chris said as he dragged Clarisse out of the door. Percy followed at a distance to make sure she couldn’t kill him. Everyone stared at the doors after them.

“We best keep going.” Annabeth said. She figured neither Chris or Clarisse would want to hear this part anyway. Beckendorf nodded.

**sitting amid a bunch of stockpiled...He was hugging his shoulders and sobbing.**

Hermes winced at the state of his son. He pulled Connor and Travis closer to him for comfort.

**It was Chris Rodriguez, the half-blood who’d gone to work for Luke.**

Zeus grumbled about how he deserved it for being a traitor but Hestia glared at him and he stopped. Instead he folded his arms across his chest and, though he would deny it forever, he actually pouted. Hera rolled her eyes at her husband’s antics.

**“It’s okay,” Clarisse was telling him...Chris backed farther into the corner. “G-get away.”**

Everyone suddenly felt horrible. This was a completely private moment that shouldn’t have been intruded on. They were all glad that neither Clarisse nor Chris were here for this part.

**“My name’s not Mary.”...Clarisse could sound that way.**

The Stoll’s eyes went wide. Most of the Greek campers were shocked. None of them knew Clarisse could sound that way. Yeah, she was nicer to Chris than anyone else but this was different. 

Travis felt even worse about teasing her for being afraid. If she had been looking after Chris in this state for months, no wonder she was so adamant about never going back in. They had all known Chris had been driven insane but it had never truly sunk in how bad he had really been. This was beyond their worst expectations. 

**“My name is Clarisse...The earth keeps healing him.”**

Annabeth grimaced. She recalled watching that fight. It had definitely been horrible.

**“Chris,” Clarisse pleaded. It sounded like she was close to tears.**

All of the Greeks shifted uncomfortably. They wanted to get through this as soon as possible and wished Percy had just left.

**“You have to get better. Please...He’s an expert in madness. Just hang on.”**

“Yes. Please hurry up.” Hermes whispered. Then he frowned. “Hang on. Clarisse found Chris in the spring. Surely Dionysus hasn’t been away from Camp for that long? Why hasn’t he healed him yet?”

“Dionysus was called away pretty much right after the winter solstice.” Silena explained. Dionysus smiled to himself. War work might not have been fun but he got six months away from that wretched camp.

**Chris’s eyes were like a cornered...“The son of Poseidon! He’s horrible!”**

Poseidon frowned. Surely he didn’t mean Percy? No. There was most likely another one of his children hiding in that maze. He sighed. It was probably too much to hope that Percy wouldn’t have to fight whichever of his children it was.

**I backed away, hoping Clarisse...he hadn’t been talking about me at all?**

Poseidon exchanged a look with Triton. He had a lot of children after all and rather a lot of them were monsters.

**And Clarisse’s tenderness...She’d known him a lot better than I realized.**

Hermes gave a slight smile. He was glad that at least Chris had someone looking out for him. He certainly needed it.

**And now he was shivering...What had happened to Chris in there?**

Hermes found he did  _ not  _ want to find out. Pretty much everyone else in the room was of the same mind.

Thalia looked over at Annabeth. Then at Grover. She couldn’t imagine the bravery it took for him to go underground. Not just underground but to the Labyrinth. Her friends never ceased to amaze her.

**I heard a creak from above...Annabeth descending into that weird maze again.**

Athena nodded. She did not want her daughter in that maze either. At least she would have her friends with her. The sea spawn might be reckless but he would protect her daughter.

**Chiron scraped a hoof on the...delve in the darkness of the endless maze...”**

“Well that part is fairly obvious.” Katie muttered.

“At least some part of the prophecy was obvious. Makes a change.” Leo said.

**We waited.**

**“The dead, the traitor, and the lost one raise.”**

Hermes perked up. Finally some good news. “The lost one? That must mean my son.” Grover sighed. Pan hadn’t really raised. He had been found and then he faded! 

“The dead and the traitor rising are not good though.” Reyna pointed out.

“The dead? That probably means they are going to find Nico at some point.” Hazel smiled.

“Yeah. We met up.” Nico nodded.

**Grover perked up...“You shall rise or fall by the ghost king’s hand,”**

“The ghost king?” Frank asked nervously, glancing at Hades. 

“There are many kings that have become ghosts.” Hades shrugged. Given what this quest was about and who they were looking for, he could make a guess at which particular ghost king it was going to be about. And it was not good news. He could not imagine Minos being willing to help them. 

**Annabeth said, “the child of Athena’s final stand.”**

Athena bit her lip in worry. All of the Roman’s turned to look at Annabeth.

“I’m still here. Clearly it wasn’t my final stand.” Annabeth rolled her eyes. That just made Athena more worried. She was going to lose one of her other children? All of the other gods were giving her sympathetic looks. Hades in particular. 

**Everyone looked around...“Annabeth isn’t the only child of Athena, right?”**

“No but that doesn’t make it any better news really.” Reyna pointed out.

**“But who’s this ghost king?”...prophecy was connected to that.**

Nico frowned. “He really is intuitive when it comes to prophecies.” He said. 

“Really?” Apollo asked, sounding weirdly pleased about this fact. A few people nodded. 

**“Are there more lines?” Chiron asked...“I don’t remember exactly.”**

“Not telling won’t help.” Athena told her daughter. 

“Besides, prophecies are often misleading.” Apollo reminded her.

“This one wasn’t.” Annabeth muttered grimly. In fact, it had been dead on. It might not have been about Percy but what had happened to Luke was the worst thing that could have happened.

**Chiron raised an eyebrow...Destroy with a hero’s final breath.”**

“Also not good.” Will sighed. He guessed that part was Daedalus dying and destroying the Labyrinth at the same time but so many heroes had taken their final breath that summer. And many more were probably going to do so when they got back to their time.

Just then the doors opened again. Clarisse, Chris and Percy came back in. Percy had a bruise blooming on his cheek in the shape of a hand. Everyone guessed that Clarisse had managed to slap him at least once but all of them looked a lot calmer now.

“Don’t stop on our account.” Chris said. Beckendorf nodded and started reading while they took their seats.

**“And?” Chiron asked...She turned to me. “Will you come?”**

“Of course he will.” Thalia scoffed.

“I still had to ask.” Annabeth shrugged. She would never assume that her friends would come with her into such danger without a good plan. She had known at the time that her plan was shaky at best and abysmal at worst.

“Who else would save you when your well thought out plans go to Hades?” Percy grinned. Annabeth stuck her tongue out. She didn’t like having to admit that Percy was much better at making up plans on the spot. 

**I didn’t even hesitate. “I’m in.”...that made it all worthwhile.**

“Awwwww!” Aphrodite squealed happily. Apollo huffed and leaned back against the couch, arms folded across his chest. Percy had to hide a smile. It seemed like Apollo was jealous. That was a good sign. Wasn’t it? He still had a lot of doubts about even considering dating a god but he couldn’t help being pleased that Apollo was interested in him. He wasn’t sure why a god would be interested in him but he wasn’t going to question some good fortune. Surely he was due some?

**“Grover, you too? The wild god...“I’ll pack extra recyclables for snacks!”**

Everyone smiled slightly. His enthusiasm was contagious.

“Hopefully you don’t lose your food after five minutes this time.” Poseidon said darkly with a glare towards his brother.

**“And Tyson,” Annabeth said...A hero is allowed only two companions.”**

“That is a large rule to break.” Athena looked at her daughter in concern.

“We needed all of us to succeed. Plus, that rule is mostly because of the amount of monsters we attract with more companions. In the Labyrinth it wouldn’t make that much difference.” Annabeth explained.

**“I need them all,” she insisted...Cyclopes had no problem underground.**

“I helped.” Tyson declared proudly. Poseidon smiled at his son.

“Yes. It sounds like you did.” He agreed. Tyson beamed with pride.

“You did great, big guy.” Percy grinned at his brother. 

**“Annabeth.” Chiron flicked his tail nervously...Only three came back.**

Hades and Artemis both looked down sadly at the reminder of those they had lost. 

“That was required by a prophecy though.” Will pointed out. “The prophecy determined that five would go and that two would die. Otherwise I’m pretty sure Zoe would have only taken two companions.” 

**Think on that. Three is a sacred number...But we have to. Please.”**

“It was your quest.” Chiron said heavily. At least this time none of the questers had died. Which the gods seemed to be figuring out as well, given that all four questers were in the room and so couldn’t have died.

“It was definitely necessary.” Percy said. He couldn’t have imagined sending Grover off to look for Pan without Tyson there to protect him. 

**I could tell Chiron didn’t like it...“I have a bad feeling about this,” he told me.**

“We all did.” Beckendorf said.

**Mrs. O’Leary came over, wagging...We are easily distracted.”**

“True.” Connor nodded.

“Yeah. Some of the stuff that goes through Percy’s mind at very important times is just bizarre.” Thalia laughed.

“I imagine if we read somebody else’s thought the same thing would happen.” Percy shrugged.

“They would not be as weird as your thoughts.” Rachel told him.

“I bet Leo’s would be even stranger.” Piper chuckled.

“Don’t even think about it, Beauty Queen.” Leo warned. He shuddered to think about his thoughts being read out to anyone, let alone this many people.

**“You’ve been in there?”...you might find the way.**

“He knows quite a lot about the Labyrinth.” Reyna frowned. 

“Yeah. He gets more suspicious by the second.” Dakota stated.

**And here, I wanted to give you...Quintus said. “For Mrs. O’Leary.”**

“He’s giving you a way to call his dog?” Gwen asked.

“Yeah. It’s probably why Mrs O’Leary ended up becoming my dog.” Percy said. “She and Quintus both took a liking to me.” 

“I still can’t believe you have a pet hellhound.” Jason shook his head.

**“Um, thanks, but—”...but be careful, the whistle is made of Stygian ice.”**

“I wonder how he got hold of that.” Hades mused.

“Why would he have a whistle made of Stygian ice?” Hermes asked.

“It works best for summoning creatures from the underworld, like hellhounds.” Persephone explained.

**“What ice?”...so you can only use it once.”**

“Still quite handy.” Travis said, glancing warily at Clarisse. He almost expected her to start yelling at him again.

**I thought about Luke, my old enemy...designed to drag me to my death.**

“Oh yeah.” Leo said. “Maybe don’t take it.”

“It would be rude not to.” Katies told him. “Just don’t use it.” 

**Quintus seemed nice. So concerned.**

“So did Luke.” Gwen reminded him. Hermes and Annabeth both scowled while the other Hermes kids all grimaced.

**And Mrs. O’Leary liked him, which had to count for something.**

“She’s a hellhound. I’m not sure I’d trust her taste in people.” Thalia said.

  
“She likes me.” Percy pointed out.

“My point.” She smirked.

**She dropped the slimy shield...myself that I would never use it,**

Poseidon nodded approvingly.

**and I dashed off to find Annabeth...I’d never been inside the Athena cabin.**

“Don’t you have to go inside for inspections?” Silena asked. Percy grinned.

“I’d never actually done an inspection at that point.” He admitted.

“What? How did you manage that?” Beckendorf asked.

“Because I’m only there over the summer and I’m the only one in my cabin, someone forgot to put me on the roster.” Percy grinned. 

“We shall have to fix that.” Chiron fixed him with a stern gaze. Percy grinned sheepishly.

**It was a silvery building...The place was a workshop for brainiac kids.**

Athena and Annabeth both smiled. 

**The bunks were all pushed...their bronze plates glinting in the sun.**

“It sounds great.” Leo said. Not as great as Hephaestus cabin but it was still pretty cool.

“It is.” Annabeth nodded.

**Annabeth stood in the back... I wondered if Annabeth knew that already.**

“I did but his comment about keeping in mind where you want to go was interesting.” She said.

“If you did that it would probably just use that to keep that particular place away from you.” Grover told her.

**“We’ll figure it out,” I promised...“You’re going to do awesome.”**

“And you did.” Percy said firmly. 

“Thanks.” Annabeth smiled gratefully.

**She looked at me gratefully...Or Tyson or Grover.”**

“Well you certainly can’t do it by yourself.” Athena told her daughter.

“I know.” She sighed. “It was just such a dangerous mission.”

“So was going to the underworld to find the master bolt. Or going to the sea of monsters.” Thalia reminded her. “All of your quests have been stupidly dangerous but that didn’t stop you going when your friends needed you.”

**“Hey, we’re your friends...“I’m sure it’s fine,” she said in a small voice.**

“The prophecy would come true even if you didn’t invite your friends along.” Apollo told her. 

“Yeah. That’s what I was worried about.” Annabeth muttered.

**“What was the last line?”...She blinked back tears and put out her arms.**

Everybody looked at Annabeth in surprise. That prophecy line must have been horrendous. Then the Greek campers considered what had happened at the end of that summer and figured it wasn’t going to be anything but horrible. With Luke becoming Kronos and the battle that occured there wasn’t too much chance of a happy ending.

**I stepped forward and hugged her. Butterflies started turning my stomach into a mosh pit.**

Annabeth smiled to herself. Athena stared at Percy with a disapproving expression on her face. She did not like the fact that they were alone in her daughter’s cabin.

**“Hey, it’s…it’s okay.” I patted her back...It just feels right.”**

“Always go with your gut.” Artemis said kindly.

“Yeah. Your instincts are awesome.” Connor smiled. Annabeth sent him a grateful look.

**“Then don’t worry about it,”...“We were just looking at maps,” I said stupidly.**

“That was a terrible lie.” Travis shook his head.

“Annabeth was looking at maps.” Percy shrugged.

“You were hugging each other.” Chris pointed out with a chuckle. 

**Malcolm stared at me. “Okay.”...did it end in the word death?”**

“Ooh, Percy’s being perceptive again.” Will said. 

“I can see why Annabeth wouldn’t want to share that line then.” Jason said. He knew that as a leader you didn’t want to worry other people if you didn’t have to.

**Annabeth stared down at her scrolls. “You’d better go, Percy. Get ready for the quest.**

“That’s a yes then.” Nico muttered.

**I’ll—I’ll see you in the morning.”...to come back from this quest alive.**

Percy smiled inwardly. For once one of his horrible feelings had been wrong. All four of them had made it out alive. Although there had been the battle. It wasn’t a particularly successful quest as they had failed to stop Luke’s army but at least Grover had found Pan. And they’d found Nico and successfully made him not hate Percy anymore.

“Chapter’s done.” Beckendorf announced.

“Ok. My turn then.” Apollo said. He took the book and began reading quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, people have commented that I've been slowing down with the last couple of chapters. That's true. My University assignments are due at the start of January and they are killing me atm. Plus with Christmas coming up, I'm not getting much time for writing. I promise I have not lost any passion for this series and as soon as my assignments are in I will get back to updating as frequently as before. However, for the next two weeks or so updates will be sparse, though I will do what I can. Thank you for your patience and I hope you all keep enjoying the story x


	5. Nico Buys Happy Meals for the Dead

“What?” Will laughed. “Why would you do that?” Nico groaned and let his head flop back against the couch.

“An offering?” Persephone looked at her stepson. He nodded.

“Really? McDonalds?” Katie asked. “Couldn’t you find something a  _ little _ nicer?”

“No.” Nico told her.

“Where did you get the money to buy happy meals?” Connor asked.

“Err…” Nico went red. Hades frowned while the Hermes kids all grinned at him. Hades didn’t want to think about his eleven year old son running around on his own, with no money and only a vengeful ghost for backup. Why had he not helped? The least he could do was make sure his son had money and access to food. 

**At least I got a good night’s sleep before the quest, right?**

“Of course not.” Poseidon sighed. 

“That is usually when your dreams are the worst.” Grover said. Percy grimaced and nodded.

**Wrong...Almost too healthy.**

Hermes frowned while Nico and Percy exchanged looks. 

“Well it has been six months since that fall.” Reyna reasoned. “It would be strange if he still looked sick.”

“Well he had looked sick before that fall. Plus he had never looked quite  _ that _ healthy.” Percy explained.

**“Our spies report success, my lord,”...Our side of the bargain is almost complete.”**

“They wanted you to go on a quest?” Dakota asked.

“What bargain?” Jason wondered.

**Excellent. The voice of Kronos...I will lead the vanguard through myself.**

“What? Kronos is strong enough to be leading the vanguard?” Apollo asked, looking a little freaked out. “Is he going to attack camp himself?”

“He’s still in the sarcophagus.” Ares pointed out.

“I guess he doesn’t expect to be in there for much longer.” Hermes said, trying not to think about what that might mean for his son.

**Luke closed his eyes as if...At last I shall rise fully from Tartarus.**

“One more heart?” Jason frowned.

“Yes. He only needs one more person to pledge themselves to him and he will have enough essence to reform in some manner. Most likely possession.” Hades said.

“No mortal could hold his essence.” Aphrodite pointed out.

“Not without some magical help but it is possible.” Athena said, looking thoughtful.

“There are other options.” Hermes stated firmly. No one disagreed with him.

**“But the form, my lord…”...It was the only blade I really feared.**

“I don’t blame you.” Chris shuddered.

“That thing is just wrong.” Beckendorf agreed.

**You pledged yourself to me...You are now beyond harm.**

“What?” Travis frowned. “How can you be beyond harm?” The gods all exchange looks. That was not good.

“He must have bathed in the River Styx. That is why he looks so healthy.” Athena said. Hermes cringed. 

Nico looked at Percy pointedly. Percy sighed. He knew he should go through with Nico’s plan but he had honestly been hoping that these books would give him a reason not to go through with it. Sadly they just seemed to be emphasising the opposite. He would have no chance to beat Luke/Kronos if he didn’t bathe in the Styx too.

**Soon you will rule the world of gods...Camp Half-Blood will be reduced to ashes.**

The Greek campers all grimaced. He may have failed to destroy the Camp but it had been a pretty steep cost. They all knew that war came at a cost but it bothered them all that the lives lost during the battle were only the beginning.

**Once those bothersome heroes...cheerleader from my freshman orientation.**

“So she is still alive.” Piper sighed.

“Yeah.” Percy sighed.

**“Hello, Luke,” Kelli smiled...How about a nice shoulder massage?”**

Annabeth tensed. She hoped Luke had more sense than that.

**Luke stepped back...You know my heart belongs to you, Luke.”**

So he liked hanging out with her until she ate someone?” Piper wrinkled her nose.

“She does exist to seduce guys.” Leo pointed out.

  
“You’d have thought he would have realised monsters do things like that.” Thalia scoffed.

**“Thanks, but no thanks...She bared her fangs and lunged.**

“How could she sense you in a dream?” Dakota wondered.

“They do serve Hecate, goddess of magic and the Mist.” Silena said. “Maybe that has something to do with it.”

**I woke with a start...middle of the night or not.**

“Why didn’t you?” Annabeth demanded.

“I got distracted.” Percy replied. She frowned, not happy about missing this information.

**Then I realized the room was lighter...waiting for me to make the first move.**

“A fountain that is sentient enough to do that?” Triton frowned.

“It probably has to do with whoever sent him the last iris message.” Jason said.

“So someone is really trying to get Percy to see Nico.” Rachel said.

“It might not be about Nico.” Leo shrugged. 

“The chapter title is about Nico buying happy meals.” Annabeth pointed out.

**I probably should’ve gone back to bed...“You’re trying to tell me something,” I said.**

“Who would be able to do that?” Will asked.

“A god?” Katie frowned.

  
“Why would a god want Percy to spy on Nico?” Beckendorf wondered. A few people turned to look at Hades. He simply shrugged, having no idea what he might or might not be doing in the future.

**No response from the fountain...Iris the messenger goddess.**

“That’s gotta be someone pretty powerful.” Thalia said. 

“Or whoever it is, struck a deal with Iris.” Connor suggested.

**The water shimmered...“I want a second opinion!” Nico snapped his fingers,**

“Always a good idea.” Will told him.

“None of this is a good idea.” Hades grunted.

**and the digging stopped...“They have as much sense.”**

“There is nothing wrong with being polite.” Hades snapped. He gave his son an approving nod.

**Nico ignored him...he poured it into the grave.**

“I can’t believe you wasted a twelve pack of coke.” Percy complained.

“It wasn’t a waste.” Nico told him.

“The dead cannot appreciate it properly.” Percy argued. Nico rolled his eyes but grinned.

**“Let the dead taste again,” he murmured...fries and hamburger into the grave.**

“How offerings have changed.” Apollo mused.

**“In my day, we used animal blood,”...“I will treat them with respect,” Nico said.**

“You call giving them McDonalds, respectful?” Clarisse scoffed.

“I presume it tastes better than animal blood.” Travis said.

“Don’t count on that.” Katie muttered. Demeter nodded in agreement. 

**“At least let me keep the toy,” the ghost said.**

“What is a ghost going to do with a toy?” Beckendorf rolled his eyes. 

“No idea.” Nico sighed. He wondered why he had put up with Minos for so long. This was reminding him just how whiny the ghost had been.

**“Be quiet!” Nico ordered. He emptied another twelve-pack of soda**

“TWO twelve packs!” Percy cried out dramatically. “How could you, Nico?”

“You stole two twelve packs and got away with it? Plus a bunch of happy meals?” Travis looked at Nico with newfound interest.

“I left some drachma.” Nico defended himself.

**and three more Happy Meals...summoned the dead with Coke and cheeseburgers.**

“That’s not a sentence I ever imagined I would hear.” Will laughed.

“I think that about at least half the sentences in these books.” Beckendorf chuckled. 

“Definitely.” Silena agreed.

**“There are too many,” the ghost said nervously. “You don’t know your own powers.”**

“Which is why you should not be doing this.” Hades told his son.

“I had it under control.” Nico muttered.

“Er...you sure about that?” Percy asked, recalling what had happened. Nico grimaced but made no reply.

**“I’ve got it under control,”...I’d never seen anything like it.**

“Why did you get a sword of Stygian Iron?” Hazel asked her brother.

“I didn’t take a weapon with me when I left Camp and Stygian iron weapons are the easiest to get hold of in the Underworld.” Nico shrugged. She nodded.

**It wasn’t celestial bronze or steel...a clasp shaped like a seashell on his cloak.**

Poseidon inhaled sharply. 

**“Who are you?” Nico said. “Speak.”...He was just a kid.**

“Yeah.” Annabeth looked at Percy like he was crazy.

“I’d always imagined him to be older.” He shrugged.

**I’d grown up hearing stories...And he wasn’t any older than I was.**

“I guess it was kind of depressing to realise how little stuff had changed over the years.” Percy sighed. 

**“How can I retrieve my sister?”...“I know you,” Theseus insisted, as if struggling to recall.**

“He must have strong memories to recognise him just from his voice.” Hazel said with a frown.

“That’s not necessarily a good thing.” Frank muttered.

**“I want to hear about my sister,”...It was the princess who guided me.”**

Percy groaned. He really  _ had _ had the answer the whole time. If only he had remembered that one sentence earlier it could have saved them so much grief.

“We figured it out in the end.” Annabeth assured him.

“Not soon enough.” Percy said as the full weight of his realisation hit him. If he had remembered this conversation and had thought to contact Rachel earlier they would have been able to find Daedalus’ workshop earlier. He might have been able to prevent Luke’s army getting to Camp. 

“Percy?” Apollo asked in concern.

“It was all my fault.” He moaned.

“What was your fault? You haven’t done anything.” Poseidon frowned, watching his son. 

“Percy, it was  _ not _ your fault.” Annabeth said. She stood up and moved to crouch in front of him. “Think of all the other things we achieved in the Labyrinth. We wouldn’t have done any of those if we had gone straight to the workshop. Think of where we found Nico, and who Tyson freed.” Everyone watched them both with a mixture of curiosity and concern. 

“But I…”

“No.” Grover put in. “Annabeth is right. What happened was not your fault.” Percy nodded though he did not look convinced. Poseidon squeezed his son’s shoulders and Apollo tentatively put a hand on his arm. He wanted to wrap it around his waist but figured that wouldn’t be the best idea just yet. Hopefully he could do that in the future and provide some proper comfort.

“I’m alright guys.” Percy said. “Let’s just keep reading.” Annabeth patted his hand and studied his face intently before nodding and going back to her seat.

**“We don’t need any of that,”...They stirred, whispering in nervous tones.**

“Something has detected your powers.” Persephone stated.

**“I want to see my sister!”...Theseus said. “You must release us.”**

“Listen to him.” Hades urged his son.

“I tried.” Nico said. “And I did in the end but it was difficult.”

**The water in my fountain...if the specters were escaping right out of the fountain.**

“That’s not possible, right?” Grover asked.

“It shouldn’t be but a lot of what has happened to you lot shouldn’t be possible.” Poseidon stated.

**In desperation I uncapped riptide...stone font crashed to the floor in pieces.**

“Sorry, dad.” Percy winced.

“It’s alright. I would rather you not take the chance of those ghosts coming through somehow.” Poseidon assured his son. He would gladly give him another fountain.

**Tyson snorted and muttered, but he kept sleeping.**

A few people snickered.

“That’s impressive.” Leo whistled.

“Seriously, how did you sleep through that?” Travis asked in astonishment. Tyson shrugged.

“Tyson sleeps like the dead.” Percy grinned. “Plus he probably didn’t hear anything over his own snoring.”

**I sank to the ground, shivering from what I’d seen...remains of the saltwater fountain.**

“Were you alright?” Triton asked.

“Just shocked.” Percy said.

“That sounds like more than a bit of shock.” Apollo said in concern. “Did you get wet or did your powers hold?”

“I was dry, so I wasn’t going to get a chill or anything.” Percy assured him.

“That’s something at least.” Poseidon muttered.

“Sorry, Percy.” Nico said. If he had better control of his powers it would never have happened.

“It wasn’t your fault. You had no idea I was going to be watching.” Percy shrugged.

**Just after dawn, the quest group met...Meanwhile, we could be heading underground.**

Grover shuddered.

**Juniper and Grover stood apart...sneakers to hide his goat legs.**

“Better safe than sorry.” Silena agreed.

**Chiron, Quintus, and Mrs. O’Leary...guard the Labyrinth exit at all times, just in case.**

“Definitely a good idea.” Reyna nodded. The gods all looked grim that such measures were necessary. 

“Yeah. It was the first time we’ve had to use pranks as real defensive traps.” Connor looked pained that pranks had to be used in such a fashion. They were supposed to lighten the mood and make people laugh.

“You guys are scarily creative when you want to be.” Katie said with a small smile. Travis practically preened at the compliment.

**Annabeth was doing one last check...“He killed the water fountain last night,” Tyson confided.**

A few more chuckles broke out at Tyson’s description.

**“What?” she asked...can I ask you a favor while I’m gone?”**

“I am glad you told me.” Chiron said. There had been too many instances of Percy not wanting to tell him things. 

“Me too.” Percy admitted. It had definitely felt better to tell someone about his dream, even if he couldn’t talk about Nico.

**“Of course, my boy.”...Kronos, we would stand no chance in a fight.”**

“We’d struggle if any of the other Titan’s showed up either.” Clarisse pointed out grimly. All of the Greeks nodded. They had barely won the fight as it was.

**Chiron rarely called Kronos his father...Kronos can find ways to twist anyone to his will.”**

“Not anyone.” Thalia said. She smiled over at Percy. 

**“Not anyone,” I promised.**

Thalia and Percy grinned at each other.

“And you keep trying to claim you’re not alike.” Jason scoffed.

**Chiron managed a smile...worthy of the forges of Hephaestus.”**

“Oh. That’s not good.” Leo said. 

Athena agreed but for a different reason. She suspected that might be how Daedalus would have stayed alive for so long. Such things were dangerous at best and should not be meddled with. Her son should know better.

**“Indeed,” Chiron said...Kronos wishes Daedalus to make him a new form?”**

Percy looked over at Annabeth. That would actually have been a better solution than the one Kronos actually used. It would have been better than an indestructible Luke.

**That was a real pleasant thought...What if he managed to turn him evil?**

Hades growled at the idea of his father being anywhere near his son. 

**It was almost enough to make...I had to explain things to him, make him listen.**

Chiron sighed. It would have been nice if Percy had mentioned that but he would take the victory that he had told him of his dream.

“Chiron might not have been able to do much but it would still help if he knew.” Annabeth said. “That way he knows what’s coming and can prepare for all eventualities.”

**“I don’t know,” I said at last...Quintus poking around the rocks.**

“Good. At least you told him about that.” Thalia nodded.

“He already knew.” Percy shrugged.

“I suspected. I did not know for sure.” Chiron corrected.

**Chiron’s jaw tightened...“Then why did you let him in?”**

“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” Ares told him.

“Maybe but when Camp is about to be invaded I’m not sure having a potential traitor in the midst of us was a great idea.” Percy pointed out. Silena grimaced. “Chiron couldn’t watch him all of the time.”

**“Because sometimes it is better...curious why we were taking so long.**

“Just a bit.” Annabeth muttered. “But it was a good thing you told Chiron.”

**“Percy, you ready?”...Luke had known about it.**

All of the Greeks frowned. They still had spies? They all looked around at each other. Silena was careful to try not to draw any attention but Beckendorf’s worried gaze wasn’t helping her nerves.

**“Take care,” Chiron told us...four of us descended into darkness.**

“Chapter’s done.” Apollo announced, sounding a little relieved. He glanced towards Percy to see if he wanted to take a break but the demigod said nothing. 

“My turn then.” Hermes said. He took the book off his half brother and grimly turned to the correct page.


	6. We Meet the God with Two Faces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas! Or Happy Holidays. Hope you all have a fabulous day!

“You met Janus?” Hermes frowned. That was very likely not a good thing. Janus was the god of doorways and choices. One of the goddesses he would have the most contact with was Hecate, goddess of the crossroads. If Hecate had switched, there was a fair chance Janus would have done so too. 

“Unfortunately.” Annabeth grumbled. “Although I preferred him to the next visitor.” She added under her breath. 

**We made it a hundred feet before we were hopelessly lost.**

“Wow. That far?” Connor asked sarcastically.

“That’s fairly impressive really.” Hermes told his son.

“It only took that long because the tunnel was straight.” Grover said.

**The tunnel looked nothing like the one Annabeth and I had stumbled into before.**

“That won’t help.” Thalia winced. 

“That’s so strange.” Hazel frowned. She wondered if her underground abilities would be of any use in the Labyrinth or whether it would confound her too.

**Now it was round like a sewer...find our way out again by reversing course.”**

“It won’t be that easy.” Athena warned her daughter.

“It never is.” Annabeth sighed.

**Unfortunately, as soon as she said that, the left wall disappeared.**

“Woah. That’s just freaky.” Travis muttered. Chris moved a little closer to Clarisse.

“There is no way that was a coincidence.” Beckendorf said.

“That certainly makes things even more complicated.” Leo whistled.

**We found ourselves in the middle...None of us could decide which way led back to camp.**

“Going back to camp won’t help anything.” Ares scoffed.

“Maybe not but if something goes wrong knowing the way out would be helpful.” Apollo pointed out.

**“Left walls are mean,” Tyson said.**

Everybody chuckled at this. Tyson was almost as good for comic relief as Percy was. 

**“Which way now?”...“So…you’re guessing.”**

“Sorry.” Percy said with an apologetic look towards Annabeth. He knew how hard leading the quest had been for her and she hadn’t needed his picking.

“Don’t worry about it. I didn’t blame you for wanting to be a bit more sure.” She shrugged.

**“Just come on,” she said...he whispered. “Are we there yet?”**

“Were you alright?” Rachel asked Grover.

“Yeah. Just, being underground.” He said with a shudder. “Especially so cramped.”

“What about you Percy? Were you ok? You’re claustrophobic aren’t you?” Apollo looked at him in concern.

“Er...yeah.” Percy looked at him in surprise.

“You mentioned it when going up the arch that Echidna torched.” The god shrugged. Percy’s eyebrows rose. How had he remembered such a tiny detail from the first book when so much had happened in between. He shook his head and answered the original question.

“Yeah, I’m claustrophobic but I was too focused on where we were to be particularly bothered by it.” He explained. Apollo nodded.

**“We’ve been down here maybe five minutes,” Annabeth told him.**

“Five minutes for you. Who knows how long it has been outside. Last time a couple of minutes was an hour.” Jason said.

“Time doesn’t always move in the same way. It might have been thirty seconds outside or it could have been a day.” Annabeth told him. 

"That's just weird. I thought time always moved faster in places like that." Silena frowned.

"They mostly do but not always." Aphrodite told her daughter with a smile.

**“It’s been longer than that,” Grover insisted...This is the opposite of the wild!”**

“That’s what makes it a good hiding spot.” Dionysus said grimly. He missed his friend and he hoped the Satyr would find him. For once a damned prophecy actually gave him hope with the line about the lost one being raised. “Nobody would think to look for a god of the wild so far from the wild.”

**We kept shuffling forward...Dionysus was not that handsome,**

“Excuse me?” Dionysus spluttered angrily.

“Sorry.” Percy said sheepishly. Dakota and Dionysus glared at him. Of all the inaccuracies that were probably there, he had to pick that one. 

**and Hermes’s nose wasn’t that big.**

Hermes frowned and went cross eyed trying to look at his nose. He settled for feeling it with the hand that wasn't holding onto Chris.

“Why would someone think I have a big nose?” He asked.

“Artistic license.” Rachel shrugged.

**In the middle of the room...Roman Empire never made it as far as Long Island.**

A few people smiled while the Romans outright laughed. The Empire might not have done but obviously they had.

“The Labyrinth…” Athena began.

“Annabeth explained.” Percy cut in. Athena glared at him for interrupting but allowed Hermes to continue reading.

**“The Labyrinth is a patchwork,”...“You make it sound like it’s alive.”**

“It pretty much is.” Annabeth said.

**A groaning noise echoed from the tunnel in front...Grover whimpered. “Please?”**

“Good idea. Given that as soon as you said something about the wall, the wall disappeared, I would avoid talk of stuff being alive.” Beckendorf nodded.

“Groaning is not good. Why don’t you try a different tunnel?” Piper suggested.

“Because they were probably all equally horrible.” Annabeth shrugged. That didn’t make Athena, Poseidon or Apollo feel any better.

**“All right,” Annabeth said...Daedalus’s workshop would be in the oldest part.”**

Annabeth grimaced to herself. It irritated her greatly that she had been so completely wrong. Especially as it was Rachel who had been the one to prove her wrong. Her pride did  _ not _ like that.

**That made sense...A neon tagger sign read MOZ RULZ.**

“I’m guessing that isn’t Roman.” Leo grinned. Annabeth and Grover both snorted in amusement. “What?” Leo wondered, looking confused.

“That’s pretty much what Percy said.” Grover explained with a smile. Leo and Percy gave each other an air high five.

**“I’m thinking this is not Roman,” I said helpfully.**

A few people chuckled.

“I’m not sure that was actually helpful.” Rachel told him. He grinned and shrugged.

**Annabeth took a deep breath, then forged ahead...just more tunnels leading on.**

Clarisse and Chris both shuddered while everyone else listened in fascination. 

**Later the ceiling turned to wooden planks...Then we found our first skeleton.**

“What?” Poseidon asked anxiously.

“It was some mortal who must have wandered in by accident.” Percy told his dad. Rachel grimaced at that. The poor person would have just disappeared. Their family would have no idea what happened and they would die alone, confused and completely lost. She wondered how many mortals that had happened to over the years.

**He was dressed in white clothes...like a million years ago.**

“Percy.” Poseidon tried to scold but he sounded too amused to pull it off. Everybody else was laughing. 

“What?” Percy grinned.

“Your mother is not that old. Even I am not that old.” Poseidon shook his head in amusement.

**What’s he doing here?”...Cretans sent people in here as human sacrifices.”**

Poseidon’s amusement faded instantly. He was forcibly reminded that Percy was not his first demigod child to explore the Labyrinth. He would have taken heart from the fact that Theseus made it out but having heard about his ghost in the previous chapter, it was hard to remain too hopeful.

**Grover gulped...like he had died trying to get out.**

Chris shuddered once more, a little more violently than last time.

“Are you ok?” Clarisse asked quietly. “Do you want to leave?” 

“No. If I can’t manage this then I’ll have to skip the whole book.” He whispered back.

“Then we skip the whole book.” She shrugged. She didn't care what anyone else thought. If Chris wanted to leave they would do so. She knew the other Campers would back them up.

“No. I’ll be ok. As long as you’re here.” Chris gave her a small smile. She nodded and tightened her hold around his waist. Hermes squeezed his son’s shoulders to show that he was there too, if he needed him.

**“Only bones,” Tyson said. “Don’t worry, goat boy...Monsters and dead milk people.”**

A few people couldn’t help but laugh at how that sounded. 

“You yourself said before that underground smells like monsters.” Percy reminded his friend. “It’s to be expected.”

“Yeah. That still didn’t make me feel better.” Grover muttered.

**“Oh, good,” Grover whimpered...Roman tile room with the fountain.**

“What?” Gwen frowned.

“How did that happen?” Will wondered.

“The Labyrinth.” Annabeth sighed.

“How did you manage to get anywhere?” Reyna asked.

“No idea really.” Percy shrugged.

**This time, we weren’t alone.**

**What I noticed first were his faces. Both of them.**

“Why would Janus interfere?” Zeus wondered, annoyed.

“To lead them astray?” Athena guessed. She, like Hermes, suspected Janus had joined the enemy.

“They seem to be doing just fine getting lost on their own.” Hermes muttered.

**They jutted out from either side...two overlapping ears and mirror-image sideburns.**

“That’s pretty freaky.” Leo said.

“Two faced man was funny to look at.” Tyson agreed. 

**He was dressed like a New York City...“This way, miss. Talk to me, please.”**

“Is he insane?” Will wondered.

“Janus is the god of choices and doorways.” Apollo told his son. “Although, he’s actually a Roman god. So I have no idea why he is there.”

**The two-faced man regarded Annabeth...We wouldn’t be going back the way we came.**

“Great.” Nico groaned.

“It’s not like we did great that way anyway. We ended up in the same place we left.” Percy pointed out.

“Yeah but no other exit means you definitely have to choose.” Dakota said.

**“The exits are closed,” Annabeth said...“The other leads to certain death.”**

“I don’t suppose he wants to give you a hint as to which is which?” Leo asked, not feeling particularly hopeful.

“Of course not.” Grover sighed.

**“I—I know who you are,” Annabeth said...That’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”**

Annabeth frowned. It was definitely what she thought she had wanted but leading that quest had made her realise that being in charge all the time really wasn’t as good as it sounded.

**“I—”...And the choice may kill you.”**

“Why do I think he isn’t talking about the doors anymore?” Will asked.

“Because I doubt Annabeth wrestles with that choice every day.” Nico said. Everybody looked at Annabeth, curious as to what Janus was talking about but she shook her head and refused to say.

**I didn’t know what they were talking about...I said. “Who are you, anyway?”**

“Thanks.” Annabeth said. She had been very grateful for Percy’s interruption.

“Hey, we always have each other’s backs.” Percy smiled.

**“I’m your best friend,” the right face said.**

**“I’m your worst enemy,” the left face said.**

“I can believe the bit about being your worst enemy. Not sure I believe him about being your best friend though.” Katie said.

“When are the gods ever your best friend?” Nico asked. 

**“I’m Janus,” both faces said in harmony...But no pressure, Annabeth. Choose!”**

“Yeah. No pressure at all.” Thalia muttered sarcastically.

**With a sudden chill, I remembered the words of the prophecy: the child of Athena’s final stand.**

“This wouldn’t be considered a final stand.” Apollo said with a frown. 

“I didn’t think it was worth the risk.” Percy shrugged.

“Well, you need to get out somehow and the only way seems to be to make a choice.” Dakota pointed out.

**“Don’t do it,” I said...a woman was standing at the fountain.**

Everyone looked around at the goddesses in the room. They all shrugged.

**She was tall and graceful...shimmered with colors like oil on water.**

Now all gazes fell upon Hera. The queen of the gods sniffed disdainfully.

“I would not interfere on this quest.” She said.

“Well that sure sounds like you.” Apollo said cheerfully. “And to think you’ve spent all this time telling us off for interfering.” 

“It could be any of the minor goddesses.” Hera persisted. Everyone looked at her sceptically.

**“Janus,” she said...“Shut up!” the right face said.**

Hera pursed her lips angrily. 

**“Excuse me?” the woman asked...“What kind of door?” the left face asked.**

“Does it matter?” Silena asked.

“To Janus it might do.” Beckendorf shrugged. Gods were weird.

**“Shut up!” the right face said...I almost wished we could’ve taken our chances with Janus.**

“We should have done.” Annabeth grumbled.

**But then the woman smiled...“I am Hera.” The woman smiled.**

“HERA!” Zeus looked at his wife, appalled. 

“You hypocrite.” Poseidon glared at his sister. Most of the other gods were glaring at Hera too. She had been acting so high and mighty and now they found out she had interfered herself. With far less reason than they had. It wasn’t any of her children on the quest, nor was it a quest to save her sister or something similar. And none of them believed she was helping out of the goodness of her heart.

“You saved the girl and her friends in that winter quest.” Hera snapped at Zeus.

“And you got angry with me.” Zeus glared. “I interfered to save my daughter. You have no reason to be interfering with this quest.”

“I’m sure I have a reason.” She protested.

“What I want to know is what you want.” Hermes said. “You hate heros. Especially the ones born from unfaithfulness like Percy. So why help them?”

“I don’t know.” Hera admitted.

“Probably for no good reason.” Leo muttered angrily. 

“How dare you!” Hera scowled at him.

“Given what you did to me, I have every right to be annoyed with you.” Leo decided to take a leaf out of Percy’s book.

“What did you do to my son?” Hephaestus turned to glare at his mother.

“I have done nothing yet.” Hera tried to assure him.

“Stay away from my children.” He snapped angrily. 

“We shall discuss your interference later.” Zeus told his wife.

**“Queen of Heaven.”...whether or not to kill me.**

“Yeah, that would be a bit distracting.” Connor nodded.

**I didn’t remember her looking so normal...She served us sandwiches and poured lemonade.**

“At least you’re giving them food.” Poseidon grunted, still eyeing Hera warily. While she would never hate most demigods as much as she did the children of her husband, she was still not usually willing to help them. And he did not trust her motives with his son.

**“Grover, dear,” she said, “use your napkin...It’s because they want something.**

“Not always.” Apollo pointed out.

“In a way you wanted something from us. You wanted us to rescue Artemis.” Percy reminded him. “You were helpful but it also benefited you. I imagine if your sister had not been captured you wouldn’t have bothered to help out.”

“I might.” Apollo said but he frowned as he realised that wasn’t true. If Artemis hadn’t been captured he wouldn’t have cared about the quest.

“But you didn’t want anything from us that we weren’t already doing so it’s still a point in your favour.” Percy said, trying to cheer the god up. It worked. Apollo nodded and grinned happily.

**Still, that didn’t keep me from...sandwiches and chips and lemonade.**

“I don’t blame you. One of the rules on a quest is that you eat when you can.” Thalia nodded. 

**I hadn’t realized how hungry I was...bad press because of one disagreement.”**

”It was a bit more than just a disagreement.” Piper pointed out. “You tried to kill him and made him kill his family which is why he had to do those labours.”

“Small details.” Hera scoffed. 

“They were probably big details to him.” Travis put in fairly. Heracles might have been a jerk but that didn’t mean he had deserved what Hera had done to him. Hera scowled.

**“Didn’t you try to kill him, like, a lot of times?”...especially after that last little incident.”**

“I’m guessing that means me.” Thalia rolled her eyes.

“You went to marriage counselling?” Hades smirked at his brother. Zeus grimaced. He really didn’t know why Hera insisted on such things.

“Clearly it didn’t work that well.” Poseidon said, gesturing to Jason.

“He’s Roman.” Hades pointed out.

“And I expect Juno was just as furious.” Demeter chuckled.

**“You mean when he sired Thalia?”...thinking of another word besides children.**

Poseidon turned to glare at his sister.

“I didn’t say anything wrong.” Hera said in exasperation.

**“As I recall, I voted to let you...swayed to support the rise of my father.”**

Zeus snarled angrily.

**“Your father?” I said. “Oh, right.”...was so weird I put it out of my mind.**

Thalia and Nico both shuddered as they realised the same thing.

“Thanks for reminding us.” Nico mock glared at Percy.

“You’re welcome.” Percy grinned. Nico stuck his tongue out.

**“We must watch the minor gods,”...They give lip service to Olympus, and yet—”**

“Well it seems like Hecate has already turned. If she has I bet Janus has too. Morpheus really could go either way.” Persephone mused.

“It seems I have some visits to make once we finish here.” Zeus growled.

“Oh do calm down, brother. Diplomacy has never been your thing.” Poseidon stated calmly.

“I don’t intend to be diplomatic.”

“So you intend to punish them for something they haven’t one yet?” Hades asked, disappointed but not surprised. Zeus opened his mouth and then closed it again. “And so giving them a very good reason to turn against us?” 

“There is no good reason.” Zeus snapped angrily.

“Maybe so but I can certainly understand.” Hades replied. “If you punish them for something they have not yet done then they will become even more bitter and resentful. All that will achieve is pushing them into father’s arms much sooner and then he might be able to rise that much sooner.” It irritated him that this even needed explaining. He was beginning to understand why his nephew spoke of the gods the way he did. While he would never actively side with his father he was very tempted to simply stay out of the fight. Part of him knew that wouldn’t end well for him but why should he help Olympus. Then he looked over at Poseidon. He and his brother had become so much closer since this reading began. It was almost like the olden days, except not being in their father’s stomach. So actually it was an improvement. Zeus might deserve what was coming but Poseidon didn’t. Neither did Hestia. Or most of the gods on Olympus. How could he abandon his family just when they were finally coming together again?

**“That’s where Dionysus went,”...I’m used to perseverance.**

“That and being married to Zeus.” Chris muttered quietly. "That would force anyone to be used to perseverance." Hermes and Clarisse both chuckled.

**You have to rise above the squabbling...he allows me to grant a wish.”**

“ZEUS! You allowed her to interfere?” Poseidon looked at his brother angrily. “Do you believe that the ancient rules do not apply to you two then? You’re supposed to lead by example and yet you don’t seem to have an issue interfering and now you allow your wife to do the same. Yet you seek to punish us for doing the same thing.” Apollo and Hermes also looked outraged. Hermes wondered if he would have been able to save Luke if he had been allowed to interfere more. And while Zeus and Hera had interfered on quests, they weren’t popping in just to say hello, it still stung that it was allowed.

“Well, at least this proves what the letter said. The rules aren’t exactly doing much good given how much interference there has been on all of Percy’s quests.” Apollo said in a fake cheerful tone. “We’ve given aid without doing the quest for them and the world hasn’t broken.”

“These are exceptional circumstances.” Zeus protested. “Father is rising.”

“It doesn’t matter. You interfered in Percy’s first quest before you even believed grandfather was rising.” Hermes pointed out. “Although it was actually to hurt them rather than help.”

“Let us discuss this at a later time.” Demeter cut in. “"And we _will_ be discussing it." She glared at Zeus to make sure he understood. "We should continue reading for now.” Poseidon nodded, though he was still glaring at Zeus for being such a hypocrite. 

**“A wish?”...Hephaestus at his forge.**

Hephaestus looked at his mother in annoyance. She knew he did not like visitors.

**Daedalus was a great inventor...that you have already been given.”**

“No they haven’t.” Aphrodite frowned.

“Perseus’ dream.” Hera reminded them.

**“I don’t understand.”...“You’re not telling me what it is!”**

“You’re not even going to help them?” Poseidon growled.

“They have the answer.” Hera shrugged innocently.

“They don’t know that. How difficult would it be to say they need a mortal to navigate the maze?” Apollo asked.

“I can’t do  _ all _ the work for them.” Hera rolled her eyes.

“You haven’t done  _ any _ work for them.” Poseidon scowled.

“If you’re not going to help why are you even there?” Hephaestus asked his mother. 

“I gave them information. If they are not intelligent enough to work it out that is hardly my fault.” She sniffed. 

**Hera shook her head...I’m sure your mother Athena would agree.”**

“I would but you haven’t actually given them anything.” Athena said dryly. 

**The room rumbled like distant thunder...You will have to pass through the ranch,**

Nico, Percy, Annabeth and Grover all grimaced at the mention of the ranch. Percy in particular did not want to relive that stop.

**I imagine. But keep going...sandwich that turned to mist in his mouth.**

“You could have left them the food.” Dionysus rolled his eyes.

“At least we did actually get to eat.” Grover said. Hera might have been pretty much useless but they were grateful for what they did get to eat.

**The fountain trickled to a stop...Oops, I can’t help you!’ Poof!”**

Hera raised an eyebrow while Annabeth glowered at the floor.

**“Poof,” Tyson agreed sadly...“I don’t know what she was talking about.”**

“Sorry guys.” Percy sighed.

“It wasn’t your fault.” Annabeth told him. “You can’t expect to remember every detail of your dream. Especially given what happened with the fountain afterwards.”

“So it’s all Nico’s fault.” Percy grinned. Nico pouted.

  
“It’s not my fault you were spying on me.”

“Not intentionally. I kept getting ghost messages telling me to watch over you.” Percy shrugged. 

**Annabeth sighed. “All right...“Because something is coming from the right,” Grover said.**

“That’s a good reason to go left.” Chris agreed.

“Yep. And a reason to get moving quickly.” Katie said.

**“Something big,” Tyson agreed...Together we plunged into the dark corridor.**

“Chapter’s done.” Hermes said.

“Let’s have a quick break.” Chiron announced. Everyone gratefully stood up. The demigods hurried off to grab some snacks as they probably wouldn’t be stopping for dinner for a little while yet. 

The break only lasted ten minutes or so. Once everyone was back in their seats, Connor picked up the book and found the correct place.


	7. Tyson Leads a Jailbreak

“Cool.” Connor grinned. Tyson clapped happily. He was so glad that Briares had finally pulled himself together and helped them during the battle. He had enjoyed spending time with him at the forges over the past year.

“Don’t tell me Percy gets himself arrested?” Poseidon asked warily. Given his son’s track record with mortal police it didn’t seem like that far of a stretch.

“No, dad. It wasn’t me that Tyson broke out.” Percy assured his father. Then he grimaced as he realised that his life was bad enough that the mention of a jailbreak and his dad assumed it was him. Was he that likely to go to jail? With the Mist seemingly so against him...probably actually. Still, that wasn’t a fun thought.

**The good news...it was a dead end.**

So you’re trapped with something big coming after you? Just great.” Apollo said anxiously.

“Ah, we had a Tyson with us.” Percy grinned.

“How does Tyson help with a dead end?” Dakota asked. 

“You’ll see.” Grover smiled. 

**After sprinting a hundred yards...Dust trickled from the stone ceiling.**

“Don’t bring the tunnel down on you.” Athena cried out. 

“It was ok.” Tyson said with a shrug.

**“Hurry!” Grover said. “Don’t bring the roof down, but hurry!”**

“Yeah. Do that.” Travis nodded.

“Tyson was doing his best.” Percy said.

“We know.” Katie assured him with a glare in Travis’ direction. “It’s just a bit nerve wracking hearing about it even if we know you’re ok.” 

**The boulder finally gave way with...rock back into placed and sealed the corridor.**

“Thank goodness for Tyson.” Chris muttered.

“Yeah. Best not find out what that was.” Clarisse agreed. Normally she would be all for standing their ground and fighting the thing but not in that maze. 

**“We trapped it,” I said.**

**“Or trapped ourselves,” Grover said.**

“Way to be positive, Grover.” Will complained.

“Sorry.” Grover grimaced.

“We were all thinking it, G-Man.” Percy assured him.

**I turned. We were in a twenty-foot-square...We’d tunneled straight into a cell.**

“What?” Jason asked. “You guys had to break out of a jail that you accidentally broke in to?”

“It is Percy.” Thalia reminded her brother.

**“What in Hades?” Annabeth tugged on the bars...even a Cyclops to slip through.**

“Nice.” Leo whistled.

“Super strength certainly comes in handy.” Piper agreed.

**“Wait!” Grover called...Annabeth told me. “This is Alcatraz.”**

“Seriously?” Rachel asked. “You ended up in Alcatraz?”

“Afraid so.” Percy sighed.

  
“Your luck is the worst.”

“Tell me about it.”

**“You mean that island is near...She probably knew what she was talking about.**

“Yeah,  _ that’s _ why she knows what she’s talking about.” Thalia scoffed.

**“Freeze,” Grover warned...before shapes had been fully defined.**

“Is that..?” Demeter asked so quietly it was almost a whisper.

“It must be.” Hera replied, looking grim. 

“Kampe has returned.” Poseidon stated, hiding a shudder. Zeus looked at his brother nervously. He had been the one who went down to Tartarus to face Kampe and free Gaea’s other children. He had faced her and it had been terrifying. 

“And she is still only the beginning.” Athena declared. “Kronos is indeed stirring up ancient monsters.” 

“But why is she there of all places?” Apollo wondered. “I know she is a jailer by trade but what could she possibly be guarding in the mortal world?”

“Well, it did say they heard sobbing. Obviously someone is there.” Hades reminded his nephew. This was not a good sign.

**“It’s her,” Tyson whimpered...her other children.**

Jason, Piper and Leo all shuddered at the mention of Gaea’s other children. Thalia watched her brother anxiously. That reaction was not a good sign. What children of Gaea had he met? There were quite a lot of options.

**Before the gods.”...Annabeth shuddered. “I hate it when he does that.”**

“Sorry.” Tyson said “But Percy asked.”

“I know. It’s ok. You were really useful, it was just creepy to listen to.” Annabeth told him.

**Like all Cyclopes, Tyson had superhuman...“Then I shall enjoy your pain, Briares.”**

“Briares?” Ares asked, interestedly. “He’s still around?” 

“I thought they had all faded.” Dionysus said in a bored tone. “But this is good news.”

“If the demigods can free him and bring him back to our side that would give us a large boost.” Zeus agreed.

**Tyson faltered when he said that name...Then she disappeared around the corner.**

“Good. Now get Briares and get out before she comes back.” Poseidon said, despite knowing it was a vain hope. His son never got that lucky.

**“H-h-horrible,” Grover said...“Cool,” I said. “Unless you’re a mountain.”**

Everybody snickered.

“Maybe the mountain wanted to be broken.” Leo suggested.

  
“Maybe. But how would you know?” Percy asked.

“Ask a Satyr. Or maybe a Nymph. They can talk to nature and stuff, right?” 

“Really, you two?” Thalia looked between them like they were both insane. “Are you actually debating whether mountains want to be broken and whether you should feel sorry for them?” 

“Hey, rocks might have feelings too.” Percy smirked. She rolled her eyes. 

**“Kampê was the jailer,” he said...help fight against the Titans in the big war.”**

Zeus grinned smugly.

**“And now Kampê is back,” I said...sky could fit in a tiny cell,**

“You’ve seen the gods change their size.” Reyna pointed out.

“Yeah but that was voluntary. I wasn’t sure why a guy as tall the sky would voluntarily make himself small enough to fit in a cell.” Percy shrugged.

**and why he was crying...forkful of spaghetti somebody had twirled together.**

“That’s…” Grover began. “Weirdly what it did look like.” He finished, sounding surprised.

“You have a weird way of describing stuff.” Apollo told Percy conversationally. 

**Several of his hands were covering...I muttered, “or he’s short.”**

“Really, Percy?” Thalia asked while the demigods all snickered.

“Tyson mentioned a lot how big and tall they were. I wasn’t expecting someone human sized.” He defended himself.

**Tyson didn’t pay any attention...Tyson insisted. “You can do anything!”**

“Oh dear. This is why you should never meet your heroes.” Piper frowned sadly. Tyson looked down. He was glad that Briares had come to fight but he had never been able to look at him quite the same way

“Hey, he might come through.” Jason tried to cheer her up.

“I thought Tyson grew up on the streets. How did he hear those stories?” Chris whispered to Clarisse who shrugged.

“Maybe he heard them once he got to the forges.” She replied.

**Briars wiped his nose with five...then disassembled it just as fast.**

“That is very cool.” Leo smiled. He was pretty quick and making stuff but he wasn’t that good yet.

“Definitely.” Beckendorf agreed. He wished that his cabin could have spent more time with Briares and Tyson. 

**Other hands were scratching...The Titans will rise and throw us back into Tartarus.”**

“You’ll have a much better chance at avoiding that if you leave.” Dakota pointed out.

“It’s not that simple.” Dionysus told him gently. “The Hekatonkheires were imprisoned and tortured for a very long time. Plus his brothers have both faded as far as I know, meaning he is the last of his kind.” Dakota nodded his understanding. 

“We all thought he had faded too.” Hermes put in.

**“Put on your brave face!” Tyson said...“My scared face keeps coming back.”**

“What the heck?” Leo asked.

“Hekatonkheires have fifty difference faces.” Annabeth told him.

“I always figured that meant they had fifty different heads.” Thalia said.

“Me too.” Katie nodded.

**“How did you do that?” I asked...hard to get a yearbook picture,” I said.**

There were a lot more sniggers around the room.

**Tyson was still entranced...Can I have your autograph?”**

“Not really the time, Tyson.” Beckendorf told the Cyclops gently. 

“Yeah, you need to hurry and get him out of there.” Poseidon agreed.

**Briares sniffled. “Do you have...She’ll sense us sooner or later.”**

“Knowing your luck it will be sooner.” Triton said.

“Hey, that’s just Percy’s luck.” Annabeth defended.

**“Break the bars,” Annabeth said...I said, “why is he stuck in jail?”**

“Percy!” Rachel cried.

“Insensitive much.” Katie said, rolling her eyes.

“Seemed like a valid question.” Leo put in. “If it was that easy to break out why is he still there?”

“Because Kampe was their jailer for thousands of years. He would have been terrified, knowing that if he got caught breaking out everything would be so much worse.” Hephaestus told his son.

**Annabeth ribbed me again...How would you feel?”**

“Like I would want to be out of there as soon as possible.” Grover said.

“Terrified.” Rachel said.

**The Hundred-Handed One...ripped it off its hinges like it was made of wet clay.**

“Woah.” Connor whistled. “That’s impressive, Tyson.”

“It was pretty awesome to watch.” Percy grinned at his half brother.

**“Come on, Briares,” Annabeth said...twice as many slapped them away.**

“Poor guy.” Gwen said sympathetically.

**“I cannot,” he said. “She will punish me.”...Tyson would cry for weeks.**

Tyson smiled gratefully at Percy. 

**“One game of rock, paper, scissors,”...we’ll leave you in jail.”**

“What?” Poseidon asked. “You’re going to risk something like that on a game?”

“I had a plan.” Percy grinned.

“It was an insane plan.” Grover told him.

“Aren’t all of Percy’s plans insane?” Artemis asked with a wry smile.

“Hey, they work.” Percy shrugged.

**Annabeth looked at me like I was crazy...“I always win rock, paper, scissors.”**

“Yeah, he has one hundred hands. He can pick all the options. You should at least make him only use one hand.” Connor pointed out.

“He would never have agreed to that.” Annabeth said.

**“Then let’s do it!” I pounded my fist...“A gun beats anything.”**

“Nice.” Travis grinned.

“I can’t believe he went for that.” Chris said. 

“Honestly, me either but he wasn’t going to leave any other way.” Percy pointed out.

**“That’s not fair.”...She’s going to blame you for ripping off the bars.**

“That is a good point.” Clarisse frowned.

**Now come on!”...Kampê was snarling at us.**

“Percy’s luck strikes again.” Apollo groaned.

**“The other way,” I said...translation to know she was planning to kill us.**

“You never know. She might want a hug.” Leo grinned.

“What monster ever wants to give you a hug?” Piper asked.

“I’m pretty sure Kelli wouldn’t have minded giving him a hug.” Rachel chuckled. Percy gave a theatrical shudder.

**We scrambled down the stairs...“Keep moving,” Briares wailed. “She is behind us!”**

“Yeah, priorities.” Hermes said.

**We ran to the far end of the yard...I said hopefully.**

“She doesn’t need to fit through the doors.” Ares rolled his eyes. “She’ll just break through.”

“Yeah. We figured that.” Grover sighed.

**Then the wall exploded...vapor that smelled sour and hot even across the yard.**

“That’s not a good sign.” Connor said.

“You don’t say.” Clarisse muttered sarcastically.

**“Poison!” Grover yelped...“Well…after you shrivel slowly to dust, yes.”**

“Lovely.” Jason muttered,

“Not what I would call it.” Piper said.

**“Let’s avoid the swords,”...He appeared to be wearing his absolutely terrified face.**

“I don’t blame him.” Hazel said quietly.

“Me either.” Frank agreed. “That sounds terrifying without having been jailed and tortured by her for thousands of years.”

**Kampê thundered toward us...but it could not have been good.**

“There is only so much the Mist can hide.” Silena stated.

**“The boat?” Grover asked...“I will distract Kampê. You run ahead.”**

“That’s very brave of you.” Triton told Tyson.

“Percy needed to get away.” Tyson said simply. 

**“I’ll help you,” I said...A lot of pain. But it won’t kill.”**

Poseidon looked at his son in concern. Even if it didn’t kill him, it would cause him agony. Was that the price for taking a fourth person on this quest?

**“Are you sure?”...pushing her back into the wall.**

“Nice shot.” Beckendorf grinned. 

“Go Tyson.” Leo cheered.

“Nail her.” Clarisse smirked.

**She shrieked and slashed with her...half-formed faces around her waist and roared.**

“That’s freaky.” Dakota wrinkled his nose.

“It was bizarre to look at.” Percy agreed.

**As we sprinted for the cellblocks...Ice cream and poison exploded everywhere,**

“What is it with you lot and throwing food around?” Reyna asked, looking between Percy, Grover and Tyson.

“If it works then it works.” Grover shrugged.

“Sometimes you have to get creative.” Percy agreed.

**all the little snakes in Kampê’s hair dotted with tuttifrutti.**

Everybody snickered.

**We dashed back into the jail yard...now wearing a pair of crooked plastic Alcatraz sunglasses.**

“Interesting fashion choice.” Piper said with a laugh.

**“Hurry!” Annabeth said...I knew he couldn’t Kampê was gaining.**

Poseidon glanced at Tyson once more to make sure he was still there. It was bad enough that Percy got himself into so much trouble. Now Tyson was in danger too. He was too old to be this stressed constantly.

**She raised her swords...I was right behind him.**

“Thank you, brother.” Tyson grinned at Percy.

“Anytime, big guy. Can’t have you getting turned into monster chow.” Percy returned the grin. Poseidon heaved a sigh of relief. At least both of his children had each other. 

**Kampê charged, but she was too late...I was glad to be back in the Labyrinth.**

“Chapter’s done.” Connor announced.

“Well that was one heck of an accidental stop.” Travis said.

  
“At least some good came of it.” Apollo said. “You freed Briares.” 

“It’s my turn to read.” Poseidon said regretfully. He didn’t particularly want to read about what trouble his sons would find next. Connor gave him the book and the sea god started reading.


	8. We Visit the Demon Dude Ranch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year Everybody! I hope it is a fantastic year for all of you :)

“This sucked.” Grover groaned.

“You think it sucked for you?” Percy asked, raising an eyebrow. “Try being me.” Poseidon now groaned. Maybe he should have made someone else read this chapter. Except it was unlikely to get any better.

“Demon dude?” Leo asked.

“A ranch owned by a monster I guess.” Jason shrugged. 

“Or a ranch full of demon dudes.” Leo grinned.

  
“Yeah. That’s a total possibility.” Piper rolled her eyes.

**We finally stopped in a room full of waterfalls...“This pit goes straight to Tartarus,”**

Poseidon and Athena both cringed. This was the second time their children had been so very close to an entrance to the Pit. They very much hoped this was a trend that would not continue.

**he murmured. “I should jump in and save you trouble.”**

“No! Poor guy.” Katie frowned. 

“He’s too much of an asset.” Zeus grunted. “He needs to fight.” All of the demigods glared at him for being so insensitive.

“He’s terrified.” Persephone snapped. “With good reason and while his expertise would be useful he will be no help to us in that state.” 

**“Don’t talk that way,” Annabeth told him...Briares said. “I have lost everything.”**

“Yeah. That would be horrible.” Connor said with a glance at Travis. Travis had been with him his entire life. He couldn’t imagine living forever while his brother was gone.

Percy glanced over at Apollo. That was certainly part of the problem with potentially dating the god. Either he would die eventually or he would have to turn immortal. Percy didn’t want to date Apollo knowing he was going to die because that was unfair to the god. Apollo could not join him in the Underworld. They would be forever apart. Or he would turn immortal and all his friends, except Thalia would die plus his mom and Paul. Did he want to live forever, continually watching them pass away and never be able to see them again? The other problem with immortality was the fickle nature of the gods. What if he became a god for Apollo and then he lost interest in Percy? He doubted godhood could be undone again.

Apollo then turned to look at him and must have guessed at least part of his thoughts because he grimaced and looked away again. 

**“What about your brothers?” Tyson asked...We can take you to them.”**

“I didn’t know.” Tyson said sadly.

“Know what?” Rachel asked.

“That his brothers had faded.” Percy told her. “Ceased to exist.” He added at her slightly confused look.

“They can do that? I thought they were immortal.” Rachel frowned.

“They are but sometimes monsters or even gods get forgotten and then they lose their will to stay immortal.” Annabeth explained.

**Briares’s expression morphed to something...I wondered if he was thinking of Pan.**

Hermes flinched. “Pan wouldn’t.” He said weakly. His son wouldn’t stay hidden for so long only to fade right before he could be found.

**I remembered something Medusa...and totally alone.**

Apollo grimaced once more. This was not looking favourable for Percy wanting to be immortal, if that ever actually became an option. On the other hand, Apollo would make sure he was never left alone like that. 

**“I must go,” Briares said...Maybe it’s because you give up on yourself.”**

“That’s an interesting idea but I think it doesn’t matter what causes them to give up. The fact that they no longer wish to be immortal is why they fade.” Hermes said.

**His pure brown eyes regarded me...which must’ve taken all his courage.**

“Thank you, goat boy.” Tyson gave Grover a grateful look.

“You tried your hardest.” Grover smiled. 

**Tyson sneezed. “It’s not okay, goat boy. He was my hero.”**

“Now Percy is my hero.” Tyson declared. Poseidon smiled but Percy grimaced. He didn’t want to be anyone’s hero. It was bad enough that he was the prophecy child and so the fate of the world was his responsibility, he didn’t want more people relying on him. Someday his luck was going to run out and he wasn’t going to be good enough to save all these people depending on him.

Apollo studied Percy’s face and saw the doubt in his expression. “You won’t let him down.” He whispered. “Besides, being part of being a regular big brother is being a hero to younger siblings.” Percy did smile at that and Apollo cheered inwardly. Outwardly he simply squeezed Percy’s arm.

“Thanks.” Percy whispered back gratefully. It did make him feel better to look at it as being a ‘regular’ big brother thing.

**I wanted to make him feel better...Let’s find a better place to camp for the night.”**

“Yes, just don’t camp near that pit.” Poseidon nodded.

**We settled in a corridor made...“How do we know when it’s morning?” Grover asked.**

“It’s just an expression. Just get some rest.” Hermes told him.

“I know, I was just annoying Annabeth.” Grover smirked. Annabeth rolled her eyes at him.

**“Just rest,” she insisted...“You worked so hard to repair it.”**

“I will make you another one.” Tyson promised. In fact he had already started making one. He hoped it would be ready to give Percy soon.

“Thanks, big guy.” Percy grinned. He might not have been able to use it often but that shield had saved his life several times and he missed it.

**Tyson looked up...and Tyson began to snore.**

“I can’t believe Tyson and Grover fell asleep that easily.” Jason said.

“Yeah, they are lucky like that.” Percy sighed.

**I tried to fall asleep myself...First day leading the quest. Just great.”**

“You’re doing fine.” Athena told her daughter.

“We are no closer to a solution.” Annabeth frowned.

“You freed Briares. That’s a pretty big achievement for day one.” Connor smiled. Given that it was Briares who had turned the tide in their fight that summer, it had been a very important thing to do. She nodded slowly, like she wasn’t quite convinced but also couldn’t deny his point. Connor grinned to himself. It was some progress.

“I can’t believe it’s only been one day.” Hazel said. “It feels like so much longer.”

“Time is weird on quests, even when you’re not in strange places like the Labyrinth or Sea of Monsters.” Percy said. “So much happens in so little time. Stuff can change in seconds.”

“I think part of it is our demigod reflexes. We are hyper aware all the time so it makes everything seem to move more slowly.” Annabeth said thoughtfully.

**“We’ll get there,” I said...I knew she had a lot of guts.**

“Of course she does.” Thalia smiled.

**“I just wish the quest was logical,”...New York to California in a day?”**

“Magic.” Silena said.

“Well, I hate it.” Annabeth complained.

**“Space isn’t the same in the maze.”...I don’t have a clue where we’re going.”**

“On the plus side, neither does Luke.” Gwen pointed out.

**“You’re doing great...“You made a cute guinea pig.”**

Most people snickered. Apollo got a thoughtful look on his face and Percy glared at him.

“You are not turning me into a guinea pig so you can see what I look like.” He said sternly. Apollo pouted.

“But I expect you looked so cute.” 

  
“No!” 

“Please?”

“You don’t have your powers anyway. And if you did the answer would still be no.” 

“You’re so mean.” Apollo stuck his tongue out and folded his arms across his chest. Percy had to admit he looked adorable. Like an overgrown five year old who wasn’t allowed sweets. He was tempted to tell Apollo this but decided against it. The retribution wouldn’t be worth it.

**“And Waterland, how you got us thrown...you knew the way to get through the maze?”**

“He would have told you by now if he knew.” Apollo said.

“And the clue was pretty cryptic. The only way Percy could have known was because it was mentioned in one dream. A lot has happened since that one dream.” Triton pointed out.

**“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Honestly.”**

**“You’d tell me if you did?”**

“You really thought Percy would deliberately not tell you how to get through the maze?” Thalia frowned. 

“He wouldn’t do that.” Apollo glared at the daughter of Athena, glad to have an excuse to do so.

“I know.” Annabeth sighed. “I just wanted to believe that the answer was that easy. I’d almost rather Percy did know than face the fact that none of us had a clue.” She explained. Percy nodded. That made sense and made him feel a little better. He had been quite hurt that she thought he would hide that from her.

**“Sure. Maybe…”...last line of the prophecy, it would help.”**

“You already guessed the line ends in ‘death’. I don’t think it’s going to be helpful.” Nico said.

“It wasn’t.” Annabeth agreed miserably. 

**Annabeth shivered. “Not here. Not in the dark.”**

“I don’t blame you.” Connor said. “Given what’s happened so far, you don’t want to be talking about unpleasant things in there.” 

“Yeah. They might come to life.” Travis agreed, although he looked mildly interested in the idea.

**“What about the choice Janus mentioned?...But now he’s back in the maze.**

Hades bit his lip. He did not like to think about his son in the Labyrinth, alone except for a vengeful ghost. His eyes moved over Nico as if to check he was still alive and sane. Nico caught his dad’s eye and gave him a reassuring smile. 

“Were you ok?” Will asked quietly. He hated that Nico was forced to live out there, alone, simply because he wouldn’t be accepted at Camp. 

“At the time I was angry and frustrated but not hurt.” Nico admitted. Will nodded. At least he hadn’t been injured with no way to help himself.

**He’s coming after me.”**

“You have such a high opinion of yourself.” Nico laughed, trying to lighten the oppressive mood.

“No, just a high opinion of your hatred of me.” Percy shot back with a grin. The son of Hades snickered.

**Annabeth was quiet for a long time...I said. “I’ll wake you if anything happens.”**

“You need to rest as well.” Poseidon looked at his son in concern.

“I wasn’t going to be sleeping anyway.” Percy shrugged. “One of us should have been rested at least. Plus, Annabeth was more likely to come up with a plan than me. She needed to be working at full power.” Poseidon sighed.

“And you need to start taking care of yourself properly.” Triton told him. “Yes, it’s important Annabeth is rested but if you’re too tired to function properly then you won’t be able to help them.” Percy nodded with a sigh.

“We did take turns.” He told them.

“And I’m willing to bet your turn was longer than it should have been.” Apollo raised an eyebrow. Percy didn’t answer which was an answer by itself.

**Annabeth looked like she wanted to protest...back in the old man’s Labyrinth prison.**

“Oh good. More Percy dreams.” Jason groaned.

**It looked more like a workshop now...his tunic was smudged with grease.**

Athena sighed at her son’s state. He might have done terrible things but he was still her son. 

**He was bent over a table...thousands of interlocking bronze feathers.**

“Oh, you’re seeing this.” Hermes nodded. 

“Gods! That’s the wings.” Leo breathed out in awe. He wished he could have seen them for himself.

“That must be pretty cool to see.” Piper said.

“Yeah. They truly were a work of art.” Percy admitted. “Wasn’t all that great though.” 

**There were two sets...flashed thirty different shades of gold.**

Beckendorf, Leo and Tyson all listened eagerly.

**The boy left the bellows...It will take at least an hour to attach them. Come.”**

“An hour?” Beckendorf frowned.

“That’s way too long.” Leo agreed.

“It was the best he could do.” Annabeth said. “The wax needed to set properly.”

**“You first,” Icarus said...we would do well to avoid flying too high or too low.**

“Yeah. Shame the kid didn’t listen to that part.” Chris muttered.

**The sea would wet the wax seals—”...We’ve been through this a million times!”**

“Clearly you needed to go through it a million and one times.” Will said, rolling his eyes.

**“One cannot be too careful.”...but still they shook on their hinges.**

“I’m guessing the guards are early.” Nico said.

“Or they lost track of time.” Will shrugged.

“Either way they don’t have time for the wax to set properly.” Beckendorf pointed out. He wondered how the wings had actually worked if the wax wasn’t ready.

**“Hurry!” Icarus said...When his left wing was sealed into the straps,**

“Woah, he’s only done one wing?” Leo frowned. He knew the story of Daedalus and Icarus and now he was wondering how they actually managed to see if the wings worked at all.

“It seems so and I doubt that door is going to hold much longer.” Beckendorf said.

**Daedalus began working on the right...golden crown and the spear-shaped beard.**

Nico grimaced and Will squeezed his hand gently, noticing the upset look on the son of Hades’ face.

“You ok?”

“I just really hate that guy.” Nico muttered. Will frowned. He assumed Nico must have met his ghost and then suddenly realised that that dude must be the one who was the ghost that Nico was taking advice from in the book. What other ghost would Nico know well enough to hate? He pulled the younger boy into a sideways hug and kept a reasonably tight hold on him.

**“Well, well,” the king said with a cruel smile...“You look like metal chickens,”**

A few people chuckled at the description. 

**he decided. “Perhaps we should pluck you and make a soup.”**

“I’m pretty sure metal doesn’t make for good soup.” Percy rolled his eyes.

“I think he meant they would pluck the metal bits off.” Thalia told him.

“Metal is tasty.” Grover put in. Everybody looked at him weirdly for that. 

**The guards laughed stupidly...wax gun and sprayed it at the king,**

“Good thinking.” Ares nodded approvingly.

**who stepped back in surprise...each got a stream of hot wax in his face.**

“Ouch.” Dakota muttered.

**“The vent!” Icarus yelled to his father...but his guards had brought no bows.**

“Probably didn’t think they would need them given that they were in a prison.” Will said fairly. 

“At least one of them could have brought one.” Clarisse scoffed. “You should always be prepared.” Will shrugged.

**One threw his sword in desperation...His sandals skimmed the waves.**

“Stupid boy.” Ares grunted.

“He’s drunk on freedom.” Hermes reminded him. 

“His dad reminded him like five minutes ago to be careful. It’s hard to enjoy freedom when you’re dead.” Clarisse rolled her eyes.

**“Stop that!” Daedalus called...You’re a genius! I trust your handiwork—”**

“The handiwork was fine, you’re just being an idiot.” Gwen said.

“Plus the job had to be rushed at the end so the wax hasn’t set properly.” Annabeth reminded them. 

**The first metal feather shook loose...desperately trying to reassert control.**

“There he goes, not listening again.” Hephaestus grunted.

“He’s panicking.” Katie said with a frown. “Almost nobody thinks logically when they are panicking.” Hephaestus sighed. This is why he preferred machines. They were much easier to understand.

**The left wing went first...feeling like I was falling.**

“I hate that feeling.” Reyna shuddered.

“It’s awful.” Thalia agreed.

**The corridor was dark...three hundred feet below.**

All of the gods who had lost children gazed at the floor. The ache never truly went away. Hades in particular grimaced and clung a little bit more tightly to his wife.

**There was no morning in the maze...I didn’t think the others needed to know that.**

“We all knew the story.” Annabeth shrugged. 

“Still, I didn’t think we needed any extra creep factor.” Percy said.

“Too true.” Grover nodded vigorously.

**The old stone tunnels changed...cheeseburger floating in brown carbonated muck.**

“You wasted a cheeseburger!” Thalia turned to glare at Nico. “It might be McDonald’s but it’s still a cheeseburger.”

“You know I used burgers and fries.” Nico looked at her, puzzled.

“But I thought the dead at least ate the stuff.” She said.

“They ate half of it.” Will put in with a grin. Thalia just glared at him. 

“Good riddance.” Katie said.

**“Nico,” I said. “He was summoning the dead again.”...I could see trees and blue sky.**

All those who had been in the maze pulled a face as they realised what this was. 

**“Where are we?” I wondered...bright red, like a cherry.**

Apollo smiled. 

**I didn’t know cows came in that color.**

“Of course they do!” Apollo looked offended.

“Yeah. Who wouldn’t think cows come in red?” Percy asked sarcastically. 

“Everybody should know that.” The sun god pouted.

“I know now.” Percy rolled his eyes.

**The cow mooed...“How do you know that?”**

“He has hooves.” Annabeth rolled her eyes.

“Eh, he wears fake shoes so often I didn’t think about it.” Percy shrugged.

**Grover huffed indignantly...Tyson blushed.**

Everybody burst out laughing at that except for Apollo who huffed. His poor cow had better be alright after that.

“The cow was fine, just startled. It didn’t even hit it.” Percy assured him, spotting the put out expression. Apollo relaxed and nodded. Percy grimaced, recalling what Geryon had been doing with the cows. Apollo was going to explode.

**“Sorry, cow!” he called...“Holy cows?”**

“What’s so strange about that?” Apollo asked him.

“Er...nothing.” Percy replied, not quite sure if Apollo was joking or not. Gods got upset about the weirdest of things. “It was just strange to look at for the first time.” Apollo nodded, seemingly accepting this.

**“Exactly. But what are they doing—”...“Bad Janus dog!” Tyson cried.**

A few people smiled at this.

**“Arf!” Grover told it, and raised a hand...Grover could speak animal.**

“It wasn’t.” Grover confirmed. “That was one foul mouthed dog.” 

**Then its master lumbered...six-inch spikes bristling at the business end.**

Ares grinned at that description. It sounded like his son. Hopefully he would be able to put the punks in their place. However he did wonder what his son was doing hanging out on a ranch. He’d been given immortality, he should at least be putting it to good use.

Percy smiled slightly. Eurytion had actually been pretty decent for a son of Ares. Definitely the nicest he had met until he met Frank. In fact it was pretty difficult to accept that Frank was the son of Ares...Mars...whatever. He was waaaay too nice.

**“Heel, Orthus,” he told the dog...“How did you know—”**

“All monsters know you’re half bloods.” Jason said. Ares growled. His son was not a monster.

“He wasn’t a monster.” Annabeth informed him.

**Annabeth put her hand on my arm...cowherd for this here ranch. Son of Ares.**

Clarisse and Frank both perked up at this. Both were interested to hear about one of their half brothers. Frank was just hoping that at least one of his siblings would be nicer than the ones he had heard about at Camp Half-Blood. Although, given that this guy was hanging around in the Labyrinth, he didn’t have particularly high hopes.

**You came through the Labyrinth...“Not many ever leave.”**

“That’s not a good sign.” Reyna said grimly. 

“We managed to leave.” Percy reminded her with a smile.

**“Wow,” I said. “I feel welcome.”...Before it’s too late.”**

Percy’s eyes widened. He had forgotten about that. Yeah, Eurytion was definitely his favourite son of Ares, after Frank.

“That’s not going to happen.” Thalia scoffed. 

“Yeah, not now they know Nico is there.” Will nodded. Hades smiled. He would forever be grateful to his nephew for looking out for his son even when he didn’t have to.

**“We’re not leaving,” Annabeth insisted...I wondered if it hurt his sinuses.**

“You wonder about some strange things.” Annabeth told Percy.

“It seemed like a valid question.”

“It  _ is _ a valid question.” Leo put in. He wanted to know the same thing.

“It doesn’t hurt their sinuses.” Beckendorf told him, looking highly amused.

**“What are they for?” I asked...“No more questions.”**

“So probably Kronos then.” Reyna said unhappily. “Or at least some of his minion.” 

“Most likely.” Dakota agreed.

**Finally we came out of the woods...she was talking about some architectural thing.**

Annabeth sighed. “Yes. I was.”

**To me it just looked like...demigods could get into serious trouble.**

“That’s true of pretty much every place you go to.” Triton sighed. Percy shrugged. He couldn’t deny that. 

“Yeah the place isn’t important. Percy can find trouble anywhere.” Hades stated grimly. Before this reading he would have found this fact rather amusing but now he just felt sorry for his brother. He did not want him to have to go through the pain Hades felt constantly since the last book. Not to mention he was actually quite fond of his nephew now.

**We hiked up the hill...Oh boy, more people to torture!**

“That doesn’t bode well.” Silena sighed. 

“Torture can be fun.” Ares shrugged. Everybody looked at him with expressions varying from amused to disgusted.

**I didn’t ponder that very long...with a few inches between.**

“Ok, that is definitely weird.” Leo said.

“Dressing must be a nightmare.” Drew wrinkled her nose. A few people rolled their eyes, wondering why Drew was even here.

**His left arm grew out of his left chest...Nice ranch you have.”**

Everybody burst out laughing.

“S..smooth, P..P..Percy.” Thalia managed to get out through her laughter. Percy blushed.

“At least he recovered fast.” Leo grinned. 

**Before the three-bodied man could respond, Nico di Angelo came out of the glass doors onto the porch.**

“Look at that. Nico has impeccable timing once again.” Will grinned.

“It’s like Nico has a radar for when Percy has opened his big mouth.” Connor laughed. 

“That’s just all of the time.” Travis chuckled.

“True but Nico’s timing is uncanny.” Will said, grinning at the younger boy.

**“Geryon, I won’t wait for—”...Then he drew his sword.**

“Woah, dude.” Chris looked at Nico in surprise. “What’s with the sword?” Nico blushed.

“I thought Percy wanted to kill me.” He admitted after a few seconds.

“Why on earth would Percy want to kill you?” Rachel asked with a frown.

“I still thought he had somehow summoned those skeletons at camp.” Nico reminded her. “Plus I was being stupid.”

“You came to your senses eventually.” Percy grinned at him.

“Now I want to kill you anyway.” Nico joked.

**The blade was just like I’d seen in my dream...“Monster friends?” Grover said indignantly.**

“Well, technically…” Annabeth began with a smirk but she trailed off at the glare Grover sent in her direction.

**“That man is wearing three shirts,”...You’re not worthy to even talk about her!”**

“Sorry.” Nico cringed.

“Don’t worry about it.” Percy waved the apology away. Now he knew that holding grudges was Nico’s fatal flaw; his behaviour made even more sense than it had at the time.

**“Wait a minute,” Annabeth pointed...I wondered if he’d eaten in the last week.**

Hades looked at his son in concern and studied him. He had definitely put on weight since the group had been here but even when they had first arrived he hadn’t looked as bad as he had been described in this book.

“Please tell me you had eaten, even if it was McDonalds?” Will asked, looking anxiously at Nico.

“I ate a bit.” Nico said quietly. “Just...not much.” He regretted that admission when he saw that Will appeared to be restraining himself from finding some food to shove down his throat. He suspected his plate would be overful once they stopped for dinner.

**His black clothes were dusty from traveling...He was too young to look so angry.**

“Demigods are always too young for what they go through.” Poseidon said, looking at his son. Percy was certainly too young to be responsible for the fate of the entire world. 

**I still remembered him as the cheerful little kid who played with Mythomagic cards.**

Nico pulled a face.

“I miss that kid.” Will said a little sadly. “But you’re awesome as you are now.” He added when he saw Nico looking upset.

**Reluctantly, he sheathed his sword...You don’t want to meet my helpers, I promise.”**

“I can believe that.” Leo muttered.

**“I believe you,” I said...He embarrassed them to death riding around in the moo-mobile.**

More laughter.

“I love your mind.” Leo chuckled.

“It certainly lightens the mood.” Triton agreed though he was looking at his half brother as if he had grown another head. 

“It was a hideous ride.” Grover put in. 

“It’s not like there is anyone around to see you.” Katie pointed out. They all shrugged. Just sitting in it had been embarrassing, regardless of the fact that nobody saw them.

**Nico sat in the very back, probably so he could keep an eye on us.**

“Yeah, pretty much.” Nico grinned sheepishly.

**Eurytion crawled in next to him... “Hippalektryons?**

“What?” The gods all gasped.

“Those are extinct.” Athena stated.

“Clearly not.” Hermes said in a ‘duh’ tone of voice. The wisdom goddess glared at him.

“How has Geryon managed to keep those hidden?” Hera wanted to know.

“I think someone needs to pay a visit to this ranch.” Zeus frowned. Who knew what else he was hiding down there.

**I thought they were extinct!...Each had the front half of a horse and the back half of a rooster.**

The gods all exchanged more looks. They definitely needed to investigate this ranch. 

**Their rear feet were huge yellow claws...“Very much in demand for omelettes!”**

“WHAT?” Artemis asked, enraged. “He kills the eggs of endangered animals to make omelettes!” 

Rachel looked equally angry. 

“Better keep reading.” Percy told his dad. It wasn’t going to get any better. 

**“That’s horrible!” Annabeth said...And you haven’t tasted the omelettes.”**

Artemis, Rachel and Grover all muttered angrily under their breath. 

“You really do have evil thoughts for a goat.” Apollo said in amusement as he heard what Grover was saying.

“Why thank you.” Grover grinned evilly. A few people did a double take as the Satyr actually managed to look quite menacing.

**“That’s not right,” Grover murmured...“Oh, whichever one comes along.**

“That doesn’t sound good.” Beckendorf said. He certainly hoped Kronos had not gotten his hands on fire breathing horses. 

“Yeah, he probably has a lot of stuff that could make life difficult.” Piper agreed. 

**And over yonder, of course, are our prize...We breed them vigorously because there’s such a demand.”**

“A demand for what?” Apollo asked dangerously. They should simply be looking after his cows. Nothing else. They shouldn’t  _ be _ in demand.

“Er…” Percy looked over at the god nervously. “You’re not going to like this part.” Apollo gritted his teeth and Poseidon decided to just read and get it over with.

**“For what?” I asked...“Meat, of course!**

“Meat? He’s selling my cows...to be eaten?” Apollo’s voice was dangerously calm.

“He’s breaking the ancient laws.” Artemis growled, angry beyond belief.

“How dare he.” Hermes scowled. All of the gods were angry on Apollo’s behalf. They all would be equally furious if their sacred animal was being butchered for food but they were also livid about the blatant disregard for sacred laws. A few were also a little ashamed that they hadn’t noticed that was happening. Admittedly there was a lot going on at the time but it sounded as if this had been happening for a long time. Not just because of the imminent war.

Will gaped. How could someone kill his dad’s sacred animal for  _ any _ reason, let alone meat? It was just so  _ wrong _ . Percy had better have killed this dude. 

“I’M GOING TO KILL HIM!” Apollo burst out suddenly, making almost everybody jump out of their skins. He leapt to his feet and began striding towards the doors of the throne room.

“Apollo.” Zeus sighed. “Sit down.” 

“HE IS SLAUGHTERING MY SACRED COWS FOR MEAT!” Apollo bellowed.

“And he will be punished.” The king of the god promised his son.

“Yes. He will.” The sun god said darkly. He paused with his hand on the door, ready to leave. 

“He won’t be doing that anymore.” Percy called out. “Geryon isn’t running that ranch anymore.” 

“You made him pay?” Percy swallowed nervously as Apollo’s golden eyes bored into him intently, even from across the room. Still, somehow he didn’t feel afraid despite every instinct telling him he should be terrified. 

“Yeah.” He nodded. “He’s dead.” Apollo considered this. He was positive Percy had not made Geryon’s death as painful as he should have done however he was unlikely he would be able to do much about it now. Still the fury was boiling in his veins and he needed an outlet. “Hey, if you get through until dinner time we can have another therapeutic archery session.” Percy promised.

“Fine.” Apollo nodded. He paced up and down for a few seconds before retaking his seat beside Percy. Immediately the demigod grabbed his hand and squeezed. The feeling of actually holding Percy’s hand was enough of a distraction to calm him down slightly. He was still plotting many,  _ many _ ways in which he could cause Geryon’s demise as painfully as possible but half of his brain was dedicated to memorising the feeling of Percy’s hand in his.

Poseidon watched the two of them for a few moments before deciding to read on and hoping his son would be able to keep the sun god calm. A feat he would never have thought possible before now. Apollo’s wrath was legendary. Not even Artemis could calm him down, although that might have been because she generally encouraged him instead of trying to calm him down.

**Armies have to eat.”...They’re just animals.”**

Percy tightened his grip on Apollo’s hand as the god began to practically vibrate in his rage. He was also muttering incoherently and the son of the sea god was rather glad he couldn’t make out distinct words. He had a feeling they would give him nightmares.

“That man is disgusting.” Thalia scowled. 

“How can he be so...terrible?” Gwen wondered. It was one thing to be a monster but this...this was just blatantly disrespecting the gods, particularly Apollo, and the Romans just couldn’t wrap their heads around it. They struggled enough with Percy’s sass but this was a whole new level.

**“Just animals!”...I’m sure he would tell us.”**

“If he was aware then I’m sure he would do more than simply tell you.” Will muttered.

“You can bet on that.” Nico said. He shifted slightly and pretended to be making himself more comfortable while actually leaning against Will to offer his support subtly. Will smiled into Nico’s hair, knowing exactly what the younger boy was doing and appreciating it. He knew Nico strongly disliked initiating human contact but was willing to help him feel better.

**“If he knew,” I muttered.**

**Nico sat forward...Quintus got his scorpions from you.”**

“Knew there was something dodgy about Quintus.” Apollo muttered darkly.

“What demigod would deal with this dude?” Connor asked with a frown. He couldn’t imagine doing business with someone who disrespected the gods and sacred laws in such a way. 

“He probably didn’t visit the ranch. Just had the scorpions delivered.” Annabeth pointed out. 

“How would he know about the business if he hadn’t been to the ranch?” Travis asked.

“It’s probably advertised if you know where to look.” Thalia said, wrinkling her nose.

**“Quintus…” Geryon mused...“Never heard of him,” Geryon said.**

“Oh yeah, you can describe him perfectly but have never heard of him.” Chris scoffed. 

“If he knows what Quintus looks like, it’s likely Quintus was at the ranch.” Clarisse pointed out to Annabeth and Thalia. 

**“Now, over here are my prize stables! You must see them.”**

Everybody who had been there grimaced. 

**I didn’t need to see them...dumped four feet of the stuff overnight.**

“Poop blizzard?” Chris and the Stolls all burst out laughing. 

“It was absolutely disgusting.” Percy said, going slightly green just at the memory.

“Didn’t Hercules have to clean some stables as one of his labours?” Piper frowned as she tried to remember. 

“Yeah.” Annabeth confirmed.

**The horses were really gross...worse than the garbage boats on the East River.**

“That is pretty bad.” Thalia grimaced.

“It was so much worse. It’s not even possible to fully describe it.” Nico told her.

**Even Nico gagged. “What is that?”...They like these conditions.”**

“Just because they eat flesh, it doesn’t mean they like living in poop.” Poseidon glared at the book in his hands. Now almost all of the gods were desperate to find this ranch and make Geryon pay. He just kept getting worse and worse.

**“Plus, you’re too cheap to have them cleaned,” Eurytion mumbled from under his hat.**

“Hurry up and kill him.” Apollo growled.

“Not yet sadly.” Percy told him. 

**“Quiet!” Geryon snapped...We rent them out all the time.”**

“Birthday parties?” Silena asked tentatively. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know what kind of birthday parties required flesh eating horses.

“Do monsters have birthday parties?” Gwen wondered.

“No idea. I can’t say I’ve ever asked.” Connor mused.

**“You’re a monster,” Annabeth decided...Was it the three bodies?”**

A few people snickered despite how much they all hated the dude.

**“You have to let these animals go,”...And I sell them anything I have to offer.”**

“So yes, he’s helping Kronos and his army.” Dakota said grimly. 

**He climbed out of the moo-mobile...He said you could guide us to the soul we need.”**

“I wonder how he thought Geryon could help?” Hades mused. “He wouldn’t be able to navigate the maze any better than anyone else.”

“I’d be more concerned that if he’s working for Kronos and he knows who Nico is then he won’t be making any deal that benefits Nico.” Jason said with some concern. “He’ll sell Nico out in a heartbeat.”

**“Wait a second,” I said...Bianca’s soul is worth a thousand of yours!**

“And you really thought  _ his _ was worth your sisters?” Annabeth snapped. Apollo glared at the son of Hades. His fury from earlier was still bubbling just under the surface and he was ready to snap at anybody who so much as looked at Percy the wrong way. Nico sighed.

“I was wrong.” He told Percy, ignoring Annabeth’s comment. Hades watched his son anxiously. At least he had realised the error of his ways. And he had his friends here to support him. Percy shot him a smile, unable to think of anything to say.

**Now, can you help me, Geryon, or not?”**

**“Oh, I imagine I could,” the rancher said.**

“Which means he probably won’t.” Will snarled.

“He is a monster. In every sense of the word.” Katie pointed out.

**“Your ghost friend, by the way, where is he?”...That’s the ghost who’s been giving you advice?”**

Everyone turned to look at Nico.

“Wasn’t Minos pretty evil?” Connor asked.

“Yes. Very.” Beckendorf nodded. Nico buried further into Will’s side. He didn’t like having all his mistakes being bared to all of these people. It was bad enough they had seen the small snippets that Percy had seen through those messages but this was even worse. He had no idea how Percy coped having his innermost thoughts read out and judged. 

Hades glared at his brother in an attempt to make him continue reading. There was no point in continuing to berate Nico. He knew what he had done was stupid and wrong and there was nothing he could do about it now.

**“It’s none of your business, Percy!”...he’ll pay very, very well indeed.”**

Hades gritted his teeth angrily. 

**Nico drew his sword, but Eurytion...Orthus will tear Mr. Jackson’s throat out.**

Now Apollo and Poseidon were the ones gritting his teeth. It made reading difficult and the words were coming out rather indistinctly. Not to mention that Apollo’s free hand was opening and closing around thin air as if he had Geryon’s neck in his grasp.

**Now, Eurytion, if you would be so kind, secure Nico.”**

“Oh for goodness sake. Let me read.” Athena huffed, getting sick of not being able to understand word of what was being said.

“It’s fine.” Poseidon growled. He took a moment to compose himself and managed to continue reading in a normal tone.

**The cowherd spit into the grass...Iris-message to our friends in the Titan army.”**

“Now is where you kill him?” Apollo asked hopefully.

“Not yet.” Percy grimaced. “It’s a bit hard to kill someone with a dog pinning you to the floor ready to rip your throat out.”

**“You fiend!” Annabeth cried...you and your party can go.**

Oh yes, because once Luke knows you’re there he’ll just let you go.” Clarisse scoffed.

“Percy won’t let him deliver Nico to Luke.” Will said confidently.

**I don’t interfere with quests...I’m afraid, include Mr. di Angelo.**

“What? Who would pay him to give half-bloods safe passage?” Ares wondered.

“Hera.” Athena realised. “It was she who told them to go to the ranch.” 

“Yet more interference.” Hermes looked at his stepmother. 

“I am aiding the heroes. Which you all complained that I did not do when I met with them.” The queen of heaven rolled her eyes. 

**“Paid by whom?” Annabeth said...Trade us all to Luke for gold.”**

“What?” Athena asked angrily. “How dare you risk my daughter like that.”

“You would rather I let Kronos have Nico?” Percy glared right back. “And a chance to control the prophecy.” 

“I would rather you come up with a better plan.” She replied haughtily.

“I don’t have good plans. I do crazy plans that should never work but somehow do.” Percy shrugged. “Annabeth is the one with the good plans and she wasn’t offering up any suggestions.”

**“Assuming the horses don’t eat you,”...I don’t want your help!”**

“You’d rather be given to Kronos?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No. I just didn’t want to admit I needed help.” Nico muttered.

**Geryon chuckled...you have to get it done by sunset.**

“Sunset? How long does that give you?” Poseidon asked.

“Most of the day.” Percy told him.

“That’s a lot of poop to clean in one day.” Piper said. Percy nodded. 

“I swear I couldn’t smell anything but horse poop for a week after this.” He complained.

**If you fail, your friends get sold...“I hope you know what you’re doing,” she said quietly.**

“Mostly.” Percy grinned. 

**“I hope so, too.”...moo-mobile rumbled off down the trail.**

“The chapter is done.” Poseidon announced, looking at the book as if it had bitten him. 

“One more and then we shall stop for the night.” Chiron announced, looking warily at Apollo.

“I’ll read.” Thalia said. She took the book from the sea god and took a deep breath before beginning.


	9. I Scoop Poop

“Lovely.” Silena grimaced.

“Definitely not the word I would use.” Percy muttered, feeling queasy at the memory. Then he realised he was still holding Apollo’s hand. He went red and tried to extract his own hand but Apollo’s warm one closed around his tightly.

“Please don’t.” The god murmured quietly. “It’s helping to keep me calm enough to listen.” Percy’s face went an even darker shade of red but he wasn’t about to argue. If this stopped Apollo from going nuclear again he would go with it. 

  
“Er...sure.” He whispered back. Apollo gave him a blinding grin and Percy figured he would have done pretty much anything to have that smile directed his way.

**I lost hope when I saw the horses’ teeth...Come inside! Eat you! Tasty half-blood!**

“They won’t listen to you.” Triton told Percy grumpily. 

“Don’t tell me you still hold a grudge.” Poseidon rolled his eyes.

“One of those things almost bit my hand off.” Triton protested. 

  
“I told you not to go near them.” The sea god said in exasperation. 

“Why did you create them in the first place?” 

“I was distracted for one moment.” 

“You created flesh eating horses because you were distracted?” Percy asked his father in amusement. To be honest that sounded like something  _ he _ would do so it sort of made sense his dad would too. Poseidon went slightly red which was answer enough. Hades rolled his eyes at his brother. 

**But I’m Poseidon’s son, I protested...We will eat you both! Seafood!**

Hades and Zeus both burst out laughing at Poseidon’s shocked expression. The sea god glared at them both.

“Even your own creations want to eat you.” Hades snickered.

“Oh shut up.” Poseidon grumbled. 

**Seafood! The other horses chimed...Her arms were crossed.**

“You’re in trouble.” Triton laughed. “She won’t let you dump that much horse poop into her river.”

“Well, how else is he going to clean the stable?” Jason asked.

“With difficulty. The way Percy always does things.” Rachel said.

**“Oh no you don’t,” she said...And you’re out of the water.”**

“Of course she can speak English.” Triton looked at Percy like he was crazy.

“I’d never heard them do anything but giggle.” He shrugged.

“Plus, you know dryads can leave their trees, why would naiads be any different?” Annabeth asked.

“I’d just never seen it happen before. The ones at Camp always stay in the lake.” 

**“What, you don’t think we can act...river used again to clean that filthy stable.”**

“I can’t say I blame her.” Poseidon sighed. Once was bad enough but a second time...well he wouldn’t be too happy about it either.

**“But—”...more important than some little river, don’t you?**

“Of course I don’t think that.” Percy frowned. Poseidon huffed. Of course he was more important than one river.

“We know, Perc.” Grover gave him a smile. 

“But not all of the naiads will have heard about how awesome you are.” Rachel said.

**well let me tell you, this naiad...NO THANK YOU!”**

“Yeah, I definitely don’t blame her, sorry Percy.” Rachel grimaced. 

“That poor naiad.” Katie frowned. She liked Heracles even less now. Artemis watched Percy carefully. This was yet another of Heracles’ labours that he was to do. She hoped he would be better and find another way instead of ignoring whatever the naiad said. Percy was most likely powerful enough to control the river no matter what the naiad wanted but she had enough faith in this particular male to think he wouldn’t do that. Which amazed her. She had never had this much faith in a man in a  _ very _ long time.

**The way she talked reminded me of my mortal friend...like she was punching me with words.**

Rachel laughed. “Glad I made an impression.”

“It would have been impossible for you not to.” Percy told her dryly.

**I couldn’t blame the naiad...million pounds of manure in my home.**

“I don’t think anyone would like that.” Connor said.

“Especially when it’s not the first time someone did it.” Chris added.

“Yeah, when you put it like that it sounds even worse.” Jason nodded.

**But still…”...she was worried she would lose.**

Triton looked over at his half brother. Based on what they had read he figured the naiad had good reason to be worried. Percy would almost definitely win that fight and in normal circumstances he wouldn’t even think of harming her. If it came down to her or his friends...Triton wasn’t so sure.

“She isn’t worried about losing a fight with you.” Poseidon said heavily. “She is a naiad and honour bound to obey you. You could simply order her to let you use her river.”

“What? But that’s wrong.” Percy frowned.

“And totally not fair.” Rachel added.

“I wouldn’t do that.” Percy said firmly. Poseidon smiled at his son.

“I know that. But she doesn’t.” He told him, wanting Percy to know he had faith in him and his character. Percy nodded, giving him a slight smile.

**The thought made me sad...I sat down on a tree stump. “Okay, you win.”**

Dionysus raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. Then he sighed. It appeared  _ he _ was the one who had been blind to the boy’s true nature. He  _ was _ different from other demigods and that left a bitter taste in his mouth. The wine god did not like being wrong.

Everyone else smiled at Percy. In particular Rachel, Katie, Grover and Artemis were delighted by his choice. Poseidon gave his son a proud smile and a sideways hug. Percy blushed under all the attention.

“Er that’s very nice of you and all but you still have to clean those stables.” Clarisse pointed out grimly.

“I managed. Besides, the naiad helped me.” Percy grinned.

**The naiad looked surprised. “Really?”...good thing for you!”**

“She really thought she was going to lose.” Annabeth said. This naiad was certainly different from the ones at camp. Yes, they would play some pranks on you if you littered in the water but she couldn’t imagine any of them behaving like this. 

**“But my friends and I are...Scoop up some dirt.”**

“What?” Leo frowned.

“How can dirt help?” Reyna wondered. Poseidon smiled having an idea where this was going. If Percy could pull it off. Which he suspected he would.

“Maybe it’s magic dirt.” Silena suggested.

“Magic dirt? I love it.” Travis grinned.

**“What?”...“I hope you find a way to rescue your friends.”**

“Ok, that wasn’t very helpful.” Nico frowned.

“Yeah, the mud had seashells in it...so what?” Thalia wondered.

“Actually, it was helpful.” Percy smiled. “It just took me a little bit to figure it out.”

**And with that she turned...when I got back to the stables.**

“That’s not good.” Will said grimly.

**Somebody must’ve come by...Come in! We’re still hungry!**

A few people snorted.

“Is that your nickname now? Seafood?” Thalia laughed.

“Only from horses who want to eat me.” Percy said. “So I’d be a bit disturbed if you used that as my nickname.” Thalia pulled a face.

“Yeah...ok. I get your point.”

**What was I supposed to do?...A tiny spout of water was shooting out of the muck.**

“That’s...weird.” Gwen said.

“The seashells are part of the sea. Percy can use them to summon seawater.” Triton grinned. “Nice.” He added, nodding to his brother.

“But Percy wasn’t trying to summon the sea. He threw it out of frustration.” Poseidon noted with a frown. Triton might have been able to do that but his demigod children needed to put more thought and focused power into such actions. Percy should not have been able to summon the sea without the express intent to do so. It was looking more and more like his son’s power levels were on par with his immortal children...not his demigod ones. Was this a sign that Percy was always supposed to become an immortal?

**“No way,” I muttered...It was seawater in the middle of a Texas ranch.**

“I don’t think that’s been done before.” Leo muttered, looking amused.

“That’s Percy for ya.” Annabeth laughed.

**I scooped up another handful...Meat is good! Baths are bad!**

“I sort of have to agree with them.” Leo mused.

“Ew.” Piper told him, glaring at him a little.

“What?” He held his hands up and grinned.

“Baths are not bad.” Percy said. 

**Then I noticed the water wasn’t...leaving regular old wet dirt.**

“Er...don’t tell me that went back to the sea?” Triton grimaced suddenly. He didn’t fancy cleaning up all the dung his half brother had possibly just dumped into their father’s domain.

“No.” Poseidon smiled, although on the inside he was a little freaked out over how powerful his son was.. “Well, sort of but it won’t harm the sea.” He was definitely glad the other gods did not know how unusual this was, or how much power it should have required. Percy should barely be able to move after using that much power but he seemed fine.

**“More!” I yelled...Mountains of poop began to melt like ice.**

“That’s not normal.” Triton whispered to his father. “He should not be able to do that without passing out or something.”

“It’s possible the sea is invigorating him faster than he tires from using his powers.” Poseidon muttered back. It was his only guess aside from Percy basically being a demigod with the powers of an immortal. 

“There should still be a crash later then.” Triton frowned.

“There should be. If there is not...well, Percy is more powerful than I believed.” Poseidon sighed. He trusted his son but if the other gods found out that he might well have the powers of an immortal already...well there would likely be another discussion about killing him. Maybe this was just Fate’s way of making sure Percy could get himself out of all the ridiculous amounts of trouble he attracted. Or his Fate was indeed to become a god. Poseidon found himself hoping that was the case.

**The tugging sensation became more intense...The pain in my gut was building.**

“You’re losing control.” Poseidon muttered. If Percy lost control he would completely flood the place and drown everything. Although clearly his friends were alive.

“It was a close run thing.” Percy admitted.

**If I didn’t shut off the geysers soon...I collapsed to my knees, exhausted.**

Poseidon and Triton exchanged slightly relieved looks. 

**In front of me was a shiny clean...scraps between their teeth had been washed out.**

“A little excessive.” Connor laughed.

  
“No. It’s just right.” Katie smiled.

“It’s pretty awesome. He cleaned that stable in a few minutes.” Travis grinned, looking over at Percy.

“No, I am not cleaning your cabin for you.” Percy rolled his eyes.

“Awww.” Travis pouted. Katie whacked him on the arm.

“Clean your own cabin.” She hissed. He grumbled about her being too mean to him.

**We won’t eat you! the horses wailed...Or I’ll be back with more seashells!”**

“Nice.” Rachel smiled.

**The horses whinnied and made...because I really love barbecue.**

“You thought we were all having a nice barbecue without you?” Annabeth asked.

“Well, Geryon was.” Percy pointed out.

“Yes but  _ we _ weren’t.” Grover reminded him.

“You wouldn’t be eating barbecue anyway. It’s meat.” Thalia pointed out.

  
“Not the point.” Grocer grumbled.

“Plus, you probably don’t want to eat anything there.” Will said grimly. “You don’t know exactly what you’ll be eating.” Apollo’s face darkened at the reminder.

**The deck was set up for a party...made from an oil drum.**

Apollo glowered and Percy squeezed his hand gently. Hopefully this chapter would be over soon so they could take a break for the evening. He just needed to keep Apollo calm enough to get through until then.

**Eurytion lounged at a picnic table...wrists roped together and their mouths gagged.**

Hades, Athena and Dionysus all scowled at the book angrily. 

“Well they are prisoners.” Ares rolled his eyes. They all turned to scowl at him but he ignored them. This was hardly the worst thing that had happened to the brats.

**“Let them go!” I yelled...if you’d poisoned that pesky naiad, but no matter.”**

Poseidon and Triton now joined in with the glaring at the book. Geryon needed to die. Like, yesterday.

**“Let my friends go,” I said. “We had a deal.”...you should always get a binding oath.”**

“There’s a life lesson.” Percy muttered.

“He would probably have found a loophole somehow even if you had made him swear.” Silena pointed out. “There are always ways around things if you look hard enough.” Percy nodded and honestly he was glad he got to kill Geryon anyway. The guy deserved it.

**I drew my sword. Orthus growled...odds against him and that huge club.**

Ares growled. Honestly, he didn’t like his son’s odds against Jackson. Even if Jackson was tired from using his powers, the fact that he now knew he could summon the sea to him would give him a tremendous advantage. Aphrodite shot him a sympathetic look.

**“Kill him yourself,” Eurytion said.**

Ares let out a sigh of relief.

**Geryon raised his eyebrows. “Excuse me?”...thing I’d ever heard son of Ares say.**

“We don’t fight other people’s battles.” Clarisse growled.

  
“Seems like he’s been doing that for a long time.” Will pointed out. She glared at him.

“Besides, I didn’t think Ares’ kids would pass up a chance to fight Percy.” Nico said.

“Eurytion was a decent enough guy.” Percy said. Apollo scowled. He had been helping Geryon slaughter his sacred animals for meat. He deserved death too.

**Geryon threw down his spatula...“And who’d take care of your cattle?**

“Apparently nobody ‘takes care’ of the cattle.” Apollo spat. Percy gave him a gentle shoulder nudge.

“Think of our archery practice. Or anything besides how annoying this dude is.” He suggested. Apollo took a deep breath, sent another blistering look towards the book and then began planning his time with Percy. Hephaestus had let him know the gift was ready. It was just a matter of when.

**Orthus, heel.”...picnic table an inch from Eurytion’s hand.**

Ares gritted his teeth. 

**I went on the attack....stabbed him right through the middle chest.**

“Nice.” Apollo grinned maniacally. Even Percy wanted to recoil slightly from the look of malicious glee on his face.

**“Aghhh!” He crumpled to his knees...The wound in his chef’s apron started to heal.**

The grin vanished while everyone else frowned.

“Why didn’t he die?” Jason wondered.

“Some monsters are powerful enough that one hit won’t kill them.” Thalia said but she wasn’t so sure that was the issue. A shot to the heart should kill anything.

“He has three hearts.” Artemis told her lieutenant. “Percy will need to stab all three at once. Or at least stab them all in quick enough succession that he can’t recover.”

“Oh great. Who decided that would be a good idea? Because, ya know, monsters aren’t hard enough already.” Beckendorf complained.

**“Nice try, sonny,” he said...she let out a muffled scream.**

Athena scowled.

“Were you ok?” Connor asked Annabeth in concern.

“Yeah, it didn’t actually touch me, it was just really hot.” She gave him a small smile.

**Tyson strained against his bonds...teddy bear for all the reaction he showed.**

“He’s a terrible fighter.” Clarisse noted.

“He doesn’t need to be a good fighter when it’s almost impossible to kill him.” Chris pointed out.

“Almost impossible. Which means it is possible. He should make sure he can fight just in case.” She shrugged.

  
“I’m glad he was terrible at fighting.” Percy put in. Clarisse smirked at him.

**Three hearts. The perfect backup system...grabbed the bow off the wall.**

That was enough to make Apollo smile.

“You’re going to shoot him?” He asked in amusement. “You?”

“Hey, I’m getting better.” Percy pouted. 

“Now you are. But not then.” 

“Well, I was planning on asking for help.” Percy told him. Apollo grinned even wider. Another chance for him to help Percy  _ and _ assist in killing that abomination. Perfect.

**I was the worst archery shot in the world...Please, guys. Just one shot. Please.**

“Of course.” Apollo agreed easily.

“Indeed.” Artemis agreed.

“You two!” Zeus growled.

“Your wife sent them there in the first place.” Apollo shot back angrily. “Besides, given what he is doing to my sacred animal I am well within my rights to interfere.” Zeus sighed. He couldn’t argue with his son on that one. Apollo did have a right to punish Geryon, Zeus just wished he didn’t do it through a demigod or by interfering on a quest.

**I notched an arrow...forehead of the grizzly bear trophy.**

“Wicked.” Will grinned.

**Geryon dropped his swords...“You can’t shoot. They told me you couldn’t…”**

“I’m guessing Luke warned him.” Reyna scowled.

“It would seem so but I can’t imagine Luke paying to give him safe passage.” Dakota frowned.

“Well, we figure that was Hera. But he probably got more money for handing them over to Luke.” Beckendorf said. Hera scowled at the idea that Geryon would dare back out of a deal with her. 

**His face turned a sickly shade of green...an oversized pair of cowboy boots.**

“Lovely.” Piper wrinkled her nose.

“Yeah. Not spoils of war I particularly wanted to keep.” Percy grimaced.

**I got my friends untied...as a burnt offering for Artemis and Apollo.**

Both of them smiled, approving of the fact that Percy thought to acknowledge their part in his success.

“Good idea. Well done.” Poseidon told his son. He was glad to see that, although Percy had some respect issues with some of the gods, he followed the appropriate rules when necessary. Now they just had to get him to apply those things to the gods he didn’t like.

**“Thanks, guys,” I said. “I owe you one.”**

Apollo chuckled while Artemis raised an eyebrow at the manner of the thanks. It was certainly not a traditional way of showing gratitude. Then she supposed that it was simply Percy Jackson’s style. At least he had remembered his manners.

**The sky thundered in the distance, so I figured maybe the burgers smelled okay.**

Apollo’s good mood vanished as he recalled what those burgers were likely to be. Taking a deep breath he tried to keep himself calm. He should be grateful. Maybe from the smell he would realise what was going on and get his cows to a safer place. 

**“Yay for Percy!” Tyson said.**

**“Can we tie up this cowherd now?” Nico asked.**

“What?” Ares growled. “He didn’t do anything.” 

“He stood by and let Geryon slaughter my cows.” Apollo glowered right back. “Probably helped him.” Ares sighed. Apollo had a point. If anybody had helped to slaughter his sacred animal for meat he would slaughter them in return. Whoever’s kid they were.

“He’s my son.” Was all he could say. He had no idea this was how immortality would turn out when he offered it to his son. Maybe he had made a mistake.

**“Yeah!” Grover agreed...We’re kinda tied together.”**

“That’s terrible.” Frank said, feeling a little bad for his half brother. It didn’t sound like he had been given much choice. Maybe with Geryon gone he had a chance at a better life. Provided Percy didn’t kill him. Or Apollo for that matter.

**“Maybe you can change things,” I said...Eurytion thought about that. “That’d be alright.”**

“It is not so easy for an immortal to change.” Athena warned.

“Well it helps that Eurytion actually wants to change.” Percy shrugged. Ares smiled ever so slightly. Letting his son live had raised Jackson a little higher in his books. He may not like the brat but maybe he didn’t hate him quite so much. Plus he was getting Eurytion out from under Geryon’s thumb. Which was another plus.

**“Get the animals on your side...Eurytion grinned. “Now, that I could live with.”**

Ares nodded. Now that was definitely a plan he could approve of.

“That was nice of you.” Silena smiled at Percy.

“He deserved better.” Percy shrugged. “And so did the animals.” 

“You’re a good guy.” Apollo told him with a pleased smile.

**“You won’t try to stop us leaving?”...They don’t know about him.”**

Hades let out a sigh of relief. That was a good thing at least. His son was still somewhat safe.

**Nico was glaring at me...let him roam around on his own.**

“You don’t  _ let  _ me do anything.” Nico said, although he sounded amused.

“Yes because you were all about making great choices back then.” Percy shot back, raising an eyebrow. Nico grimaced.

**“You could stay here until we’re done...You got my sister killed!”**

Nico groaned.

**“Nico,” Annabeth said, “that wasn’t Percy’s fault...you’d help me bring her back!”**

“No. Bianca wouldn’t want that.” Hazel told him gently. “She wouldn’t want to come back knowing the cost for that had been somebody else’s life.” 

  
“I know.” Nico said in a small voice. Will held him closer.

**“A soul for a soul?” I said...I said. “Not like that.”**

“Listen to your cousin.” Hades said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I did. Eventually.” Nico grinned sheepishly.

**“You didn’t know her!” he shouted...Nico not to listen to him. “Let’s ask Bianca.”**

“You worked out that prophecy line pretty quickly. You seem to have an affinity for them.” Apollo mused.

“Lucky me.” Percy muttered sarcastically.

“It’s a useful trait to have.” Will said. Percy just grumbled some more.

**The sky seemed to grow darker all of a sudden...“Why would she?”**

“Because she wanted Percy to protect you.” Thalia said, sending Nico a sympathetic smile.

**“Because she’s been sending me...so I can protect you.”**

“I’m sorry, Nico.” Percy said suddenly. He hadn’t thought about how that would sound to the son of Hades. His sister was helping Percy to watch Nico and sending him messages when she wouldn’t talk to Nico at all. Not to mention she came when Percy suggested summoning her but not when her brother did. To someone who had already been abandoned once by his sister, it was like a slap in the face. Especially when the person she did respond to was the one Nico saw as responsible for her death.

“Don’t worry. Bianca was right to do what she did.” Nico said with a sigh. Yes, he still hated the fact that Bianca hadn’t wanted to talk to him but he had to admit he hadn’t been ready to hear what she would say.

**Nico shook his head. “That’s impossible.”...Nico said. “I’ll try.”**

“Oh goodie. Summoning the dead in the Labyrinth. What could possibly go wrong?” Jason asked.

“Actually, nothing really went wrong with this part.” Annabeth said. “Pretty much the only bit where nothing went wrong.”

**Eurytion scratched his beard...I hope the dead like root beer.”**

“I don’t think the dead are that fussy.” Hazel said.

“Chapter’s over.” Thalia announced.

“Right. We shall break for dinner and then have an early evening. We need to get a bright and early start tomorrow.” Chiron told them all. The demigods quickly made their way towards the door, suddenly starving.

Before anyone could leave the room there was a flash of light and some more people were standing in the middle of the room.

“Pollux?” Connor called, looking a bit confused.

“Michael?” Will frowned.

“Hey guys.” Pollux said, blinking rapidly and looking a bit overwhelmed. Michael looked like he was going to be sick.

“My dear.” Poseidon watched as his wife’s eyes roamed all over the room. He stood and moved to Percy’s side when her eyes landed on his son and narrowed dangerously.

“Poseidon.” She greeted, a little stiffly. “My son.” She nodded to Triton. 

  
“It seems we need more introductions.” Zeus let out a long suffering sigh. “State your name and godly parent.”

“Pollux Webber. Son of Dionysus.” Pollux said. The wine god’s head snapped up and he stared at his son intently. There was an air of great sadness about him and it set Dionysus on edge. Dakota also studied the newcomer with interest. He was excited to meet one of his Greek half brothers.

“Dionysus? Surely you mean Bacchus?” Interrupted a blond boy in an irritated voice. “I’m Octavian, legacy of Apollo.” He added at a look from Zeus.

“Octavian.” Reyna sighed. “No. He means Dionysus.”

“Reyna!” Octavian greeted, raising an eyebrow. “Why are we here, hanging out with the  _ Greeks _ ?” All of the Greek demigods looked affronted by the way he spat the word ‘Greek’.

“Let us go somewhere else and I shall explain.” Reyna said. She led Octavian out of the room as quickly as possible.

“Michael Yew.” Michael introduced himself. “Son of Apollo.” Apollo looked at his son, giving him a smile and a wave. 

“I am Amphitrite.” The queen of the seas introduced herself. “Wife of Poseidon and Triton’s mother.”

“How much do you know, dear?” Poseidon asked nervously. 

“Everything you do.” She replied. “I was transported here and somehow all of the knowledge of these books so far was put into my head. I still need to sort through the information though.”

“When are you from?” Triton asked. She gave him a strange look but revealed she was from the same time as all the other gods and goddesses. Pollux and Michael were from the same time as the majority of the Greek demigods and Octavian was from the same time as the other Romans. With that out of the way, the demigods continued their journey to the dining hall. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a celebratory chapter for my assignments being done. Yay me. Also, I added people in at this point because it's the last overnight break before the end of this book and I wanted Pollux in particular here for the end of this book. I also realised that Michael should be here as the head councillor for Apollo cabin. I won't be adding any more characters from here on out. No new ones, no updating old characters for their older versions, this group will be reading from now until the end of Blood of Olympus...which I shall be doing. And I won't be changing the story, everything will remain the same. Yes the second series will be awkward with the whole Percabeth thing but I won't focus too much on that. While there will be jealousy (what's the fun without that) I will be focusing on what's going on around them rather than the relationship...except the stables scene which will be pretty much pure embarrassment and jealousy. Hope you all enjoy this...and I expect you'll looove the next chapter as it's what most of you have been waiting for since a certain tag went up.


	10. An Important Question

Dionysus and Dakota sat on either side of Pollux while the other gods that had come with them all sat with their children. Hestia and Artemis watched over the group from the doorway with Chiron. Hera left in a huff when Zeus sat down with Thalia and Jason. The look in her eye promised retribution and Hestia made a mental note to speak with her sister sooner rather than later. 

Connor went to sit with Annabeth, Grover, Athena, Percy, Tyson and Rachel. Poseidon was off with Amphitrite and Triton, explaining a few things. 

“So, I take it that leading a quest wasn’t everything you thought it would be?” Connor asked Annabeth quietly.

“Not really.” She admitted with a sigh. “But I was naive and I thought that I could do anything.”

“You can do anything.” Connor told her. “Think how many times you saved Percy’s butt.”

“He’s saved mine too.”

“I know. We all have strengths and weaknesses. That doesn’t mean you can’t do anything you set your mind too.” Annabeth smiled at him gratefully. This quest had crushed a lot of her confidence in her own leadership abilities. Especially once Rachel joined in and was so easily able to do what she could not despite her years of study. 

“Thanks, Connor.”

“Anytime.” He grinned impishly. 

Athena watched her daughter interact with the son of Hermes with mild interest and a small amount of concern. Maybe it was a sign she was finally getting over her ridiculous crush on the sea spawn. Not that Athena thought a son of Hermes any more appropriate for her daughter, especially considering what Luke had done to her. 

Travis was also watching his brother while Katie chatted away about plants she could grow to help them against the Titans. Apparently she’d been discussing ideas with her mother. Still, Travis was paying more attention to his little brother who was chatting to Annabeth while looking at her as if she had hung the moon. He didn’t remember the last time Connor had had a crush like this. There had been a passing fancy on an Aphrodite kid last summer but nothing else since. While he wanted his brother to be happy, everybody knew that Annabeth still had feelings for Luke. Travis didn’t want her using his brother as a substitute for Luke. 

“Are you listening to a word I’ve said?” Katie asked suddenly.

“Er...yeah, sure.” He said.

“So what did I just say?” Travis gulped. 

“You want to try growing poison ivy?” Her eyes narrowed and for a frightening moment he thought he had gotten it wrong.

“Lucky guess.” She glared. He grinned, relieved.

“Hey, you wanna take a walk around the gardens?” He knew she adored the gardens of Olympus. 

“Yeah. That would be great.” She nodded, looking less annoyed by the second. They both stood up and made their way out of the dining hall.

********************

Silena sat with her mother and Beckendorf. She was growing more anxious that her secret would be revealed to all of her friends. And that they would blame her for the fight that had happened at the end of that summer. 

“You ok?” Beckendorf asked, jolting her out of her thoughts.

“Yeah. I was just...thinking.” She sighed.

“They didn’t look like happy thoughts.” He said.

“Not particularly.” She admitted. “Still, what did you want to do with our free time tonight?”

“Well, Leo and Tyson wanted to go over some designs for the mini chariots for the race.” Beckendorf gave her an apologetic look.

“That’s ok. Maybe I could come and watch you guys work?” She suggested. She loved watching Beckendorf work, even if the forges were terrible for her hair. He grinned happily.

“I’d love you too.” He said. She grinned back. Aphrodite nodded at their conversation. She knew her daughter was worried a lot and honestly, she had a good reason. The love goddess knew the other gods would not be happy about her daughter’s betrayal. She thought her friends would understand eventually but given how Zeus acted...Aphrodite knew she would have to step in. And step in she would. Still, it would be messy and she wanted to protect Silena from that. She watched as Silena and Beckendorf left the room, waving for Leo and Tyson to join them.

***********************

Dionysus watched his son as he picked at his plate of food. The sadness that had clung to him when he had arrived had been momentarily pushed aside to make way for interest and excitement. Now the sadness was back. The wine god noticed that Pollux seemed to constantly look to the side as if expecting someone, or something, to be there. 

“So what powers do you have?” Dakota asked Pollux eagerly.

“Pretty much just growing fruit plants.” Pollux shrugged. “Oh and I can plan a pretty wicked party.”

“Do you have any control over madness and stuff?”

“Not really.” Pollux answered. Then he frowned thoughtfully. “Although I haven’t really tried.” The questioning continued and Dionysus had to remind himself that here he didn’t have to hide his amusement as his children’s antics. Still, he had spent so long closed off that it was hard to remember he didn’t have to remain aloof. 

“How do you find camp?” He finally found his voice. He frowned as he noted that his son’s face lost a little colour.

“It’s great.” He said, voice strained. “Obviously it’s difficult at the moment, with the war coming up but usually it’s pretty awesome.” Dionysus wanted to press further about what was on his mind but he didn’t want to alienate his son so soon. 

“What’s your favourite thing to do?” 

“I love tending to the strawberry plants. But other than that, the climbing wall is pretty fun.”

“What about you, Dakota? What’s your favourite activity at your Camp?” 

“War games are pretty fun.” Dakota smiled. 

“War games like capture the flag?” Pollux asked, finally looking interested once more. He and Dakota began discussing the difference between Roman and Greek war games. Dionysus sat back, half listening and half simply enjoying the moment. He didn’t have many demigod children and since his punishment he had to try even harder to keep his distance. Now? He planned to enjoy it while he could.

*************************

Nico sat with Will, Hazel, Frank, Michael, Apollo, Hades and Persephone. Michael was being dragged into a discussion about archery with Frank and Will. Hazel looked over at Nico.

“Are you ok?” She asked anxiously.

“I don’t know.” He admitted quietly. “I hate reading about all the mistakes I made back then.”

“You were…still are a kid.” Hazel said. “You’re supposed to make mistakes sometimes.”

“Not mistakes that get people killed.” Nico grimaced. “And we’re demigods. Not just regular kids.”

“You can’t have done anything too terrible or I can’t imagine all your friends being so nice to you.” Hazel pointed out.

“They are too good to me. And it’s because of them that I didn’t end up making those mistakes.” 

“You deserve good friends.” Hazel told him. “And it seems like you have some of the best.” Nico looked over at the others.

“Yeah. I do.” He agreed easily. 

“What about Bianca?” Hazel asked nervously. “Are you still mad at her?” Nico started. He hadn’t realised Hazel had picked up on that. He considered. Most of his anger had faded, not he was just left with the hurt.

“I’m sad that apparently she chose to be reborn without saying goodbye. I was angry that she sent Percy iris messages and came when he called but wouldn’t talk to me. Now? I understand  _ why _ she did what she did but it still hurts.”

“Yeah. That sucks.” Hazel sighed softly. It was evident from the readings that Bianca had cared for Nico but Hazel felt that her half sister could have done a better job of looking after him. Maybe she had been good before but since Grover had found them all Bianca had done was hurt Nico. Even if she had good intentions. Still, she decided she had pried enough for now and changed the subject. 

They chatted some more about Camp Jupiter. Then Apollo left. Soon afterwards Hades and Persephone excused themselves. That left Nico, Hazel, Frank, Will and Michael to head out into the gardens. The archery discussion continued and then they decided to have a competition again. Frank knew he wasn’t quite as good as the Apollo kids but it was good fun nevertheless. Nico and Hazel watched from the side, cheering on Will and Frank respectively. Michael ended up winning and was quite smug about the fact. He was gloating so much that Frank ended up shoving him into a nearby bush, causing him to tumble head over heel. Everyone else burst out laughing while Michael cussed up a storm. 

They resumed their walk in the gardens and Frank wrapped an arm around Hazel’s shoulder when he noticed she was cold. She blushed a little but smiled at him gratefully. Frank really was a sweet guy. They kept walking until it got dark and then they returned to their rooms. Nico and Hazel went to stay with their father while Frank went back to the guest rooms. Will led Michael to their father’s rooms. He wasn’t there but they made themselves comfortable and fell asleep pretty quickly. 

**************************

Percy sat awkwardly with Thalia, Jason and Zeus for dinner. Thalia had begged him to sit with them and he had been happy to until he realised that Zeus planned on sitting with his children. Then he realised why Thalia had wanted him with them. They sat in awkward silence until Percy decided to ask Jason about Camp Jupiter. That opened him up and they began an easy discussion on the differences between the two camps. Percy was intrigued by the idea of a city in the same place as a training camp. He wondered if Camp Half-Blood could ever have the same thing. Maybe if they could get the two camps to work together they could work something out.

Jason enjoyed the conversation with Percy. He managed to keep the goofy comments to a minimum but Jason was so used to Leo that he just shrugged them off anyway. He had always been a bit wary of Percy. He was a Greek and well as a son of Neptune. Both of those things set his internal alarm bells ringing even though Thalia had vouched for him. Then they continually read about how powerful Percy was. Every time they thought he did something super powerful he then did something else to blow that out of the water. Now, having this conversation with him, Jason relaxed. 

Percy was just another regular guy. Sure he was powerful but speaking with him set Jason’s nerves at rest. He actually enjoyed the other demigod’s company. It had also helped that his jealousy had been set to rest. Thalia and he had spent a lot of time talking in the past few days and he no longer felt replaced by Percy. 

Thalia occasionally added her input to the boys’ conversation but mostly she was content to sit back and watch her brother and the guy she considered her brother, finally getting along. Zeus didn’t say much at all but the fact that he sat with them at all was progress. Honestly, Thalia was surprised but secretly pleased that he had come to sit with them. He was making an effort which was all she could ask. 

Percy found himself getting so absorbed in the conversation that he almost missed Apollo signalling for him to join him. He excused himself from his present company and joined the god by the doors.

“I thought you would want to spend some time with Michael.” Percy frowned.

“I have. And I will. But I still feel so…” Apollo trailed off. “You’re the only person I know who has looked at me when I’m in a rage and not backed away. You managed to keep me calm and I know it’s a lot to ask but I need you to help me again now.” His face was calm but his eyes were pleading. How could Percy say no to that? Besides, Apollo had been there when he needed help. It was his turn to repay the favour.

“Sure.” He agreed. Apollo smiled gratefully and they made their way to the archery range. Apollo had somehow already set the place up with images of both Geryon and Eurytion on the targets. “You gonna write some stuff down to shoot at them or you just gonna play pin the arrow on the jerk?” Percy asked. Apollo let out a huff of laughter.

“I’m just playing pin the tail as you call it.” Apollo took his place and got himself ready to shoot. Percy watched with interest. He had never actually seen the god shoot in full flow. He had done a few demonstration shots but nothing like this. The speed and grace with which Apollo drew arrow and after arrow and let them all fly perfectly took his breath away. Then he caught sight of his face. HIs expression was murderous and Percy had to remind himself that Apollo wouldn’t hurt him and that it wasn’t him the god was mad at. This was the god who had killed seven boys because their mother insulted Leto. This was the god who had flayed a Satyr alive for thinking he was better musically than Apollo. And Percy couldn’t look away. It was mesmerising, the deadly grace with which he shot. He shook his head to clear it. He was here to  _ help _ Apollo, not oogle him. He felt his face flush at the thought.

“You alright over there?” He asked tentatively when the arrows finally ran out. Apollo took a moment before he answered.

“I’m better. Maybe not alright quite yet.” The god admitted. 

“It’s a start.” Percy smiled. Now he moved over to the god’s side and put a hand on his shoulder. Apollo turned to face him.

“Thank you, Percy.” The son of the sea god was hyper aware of how close they were. Apollo’s face was only inches from his own, although the god was a couple of inches taller.

“You’re welcome.” He said, his voice coming out a little strangled much to his embarrassment. “Although I didn’t really do anything.”

“Your presence was enough.” Apollo grinned, gratitude in his eyes. Then he bit his lip, looking nervous. Percy was surprised by the human gesture. “Right, I have something I need to do quickly. Will you...do you want...maybe...do you want to come and ride the sun chariot with me tomorrow morning?” Percy raised an eyebrow. He had a feeling there was more to Apollo’s request than simply riding the chariot but it sounded pretty cool.

“Er...sure? You might have to wake me up, I’m guessing you head out pretty early?” 

“Yeah. Worth it for the view though.” Apollo grinned, looking relieved. “Besides, we have to be back for the reading so we won’t be out all day.”

“Alright. I’ll come.” Percy agreed. Apollo grinned. “I’ll see you in the morning.” He and Percy then headed in different directions. Percy figured that if he was going to be out at the crack of dawn he should get an early night. Not to mention he was hoping to catch his dad before he went to sleep. Amphitrite being here made him nervous. He didn’t want to lose the closeness he had gained with his father because she didn’t approve of him. Not that he blamed her but understanding her point of view didn’t make him feel any better.

His dad was in his quarters with Amphitrite and Triton. Percy hid a grimace at the sight of his stepmother. 

“Hey Percy.” Triton grinned easily at him. 

“Hello, Perseus.” Amphitrite said, giving him a strained smile. 

“Er...hello.” Percy said. “It’s just Percy.” He blurted out. She nodded.

“My apologies.” The sea queen regarded her husband’s child with curiosity. She had spent the evening discussing what she had learnt with her husband and son. Normally she loathed his other children and not only because they were the product of his cheating on her. But they also inherited his worst traits which were amplified by their human side. It was even worse than this demigod was Poseidon’s favourite child, even over Triton. However, it seemed that this one demigod had managed to inherit her husband’s best nature. Not only that but he had won her son over to his side. Triton had vouched for Percy which surprised her. He was a bit more powerful than she would like but he had a good heart. That much was evident from the books.

“How are you finding these books?” She asked, if only for something to say.

“Horrible really.” He shrugged. 

“Yes, I expect having your thoughts read out is unpleasant.” She acknowledged. Percy nodded. He was quite shy, something he certainly did  _ not  _ get from his father. 

“Er...dad.” He said suddenly.

“Yes?” Poseidon asked, eager to break the awkward silence.

“Apollo wants to go out in the sun chariot in the morning and I’m going with him.” Poseidon raised an eyebrow. As did Amphitrite. Apollo had taken an interest in this demigod? Quite a large interest if he was taking him out in the sun chariot. One look at her husband told her he almost certainly approved, though he was wary. That was an interesting development.

“Alright.” Poseidon agreed. Percy heaved a sigh of relief. 

“So, I’m going to catch an early night.” His dad nodded.

“Sleep well.”

“Yes, sleep well, Percy. You’ll need your beauty sleep.” Triton teased. Percy felt his face going red.

“You’re just jealous because even beauty sleep couldn’t help you.” He shot back. Triton burst out laughing. Then he gestured for his half brother to head to bed which he did. 

“You seem to get along well.” Amphitrite raised an eyebrow at her son. He shrugged.

“Percy’s a good kid.” Triton told her.

“I need to have a word with Apollo.” Poseidon stated. Triton sniggered.

“Try not to scare him off.” 

“I make no promises.” The sea god smirked. Amphitrite rolled her eyes. Poseidon left the room in search of the sun god. He found him in his quarters and he seemed to be having a mild panic attack.

“Worried about something?” Poseidon asked from the doorway. Apollo almost jumped out of his skin. The sea god chuckled in amusement.

“Poseidon.” Apollo breathed. “I didn’t hear you come in.” 

“Clearly.” 

“What can I do for you?”

“I hear you plan on taking my son out in your chariot in the morning.”

“That was the plan, yes.”

“Did you plan on anything else?” Poseidon stared at the sun god intently.

“Er...there is the  _ slight _ possibility that I might...well I was considering asking him to date me.” Apollo admitted eventually. Poseidon noted that he looked like he might actually be sick. He hadn’t seen the sun god this worked up since...well, ever. 

“Then I believe we need to discuss some ground rules.”

“He hasn’t even said yes yet.” Apollo whined.

“I saw him with you earlier. He will say yes.” Poseidon rolled his eyes. Apollo suddenly grinned.

“You really think so?”

“I do. Now, you know Percy is under age. Which means no  _ funny business _ until he is of age.” Apollo’s face was stricken like he couldn’t believe they were having this conversation. If he was honest with himself, Poseidon couldn’t believe they were having this conversation either. He would do almost anything to  _ not _ have to discuss this with Apollo. Or with anyone. His son’s sex life was not something he  _ ever _ wanted to think about. 

“Of course.” Apollo managed to choke out.

“Even if he becomes immortal.” Poseidon added.

“What?” 

“Even if Percy ends up becoming immortal, the rules still apply until he is of age. Becoming a god does not mean he is immediately of age.”

“Understood.” Apollo nodded. It did make sense. Being immortal didn’t automatically age you up. Even if Percy would be able to look however he wanted. Looking of age was not the same as actually  _ being  _ of age. Still, Percy wasn’t quite sixteen yet. That was two years to wait. Apollo could manage that. Two years was the blink of an eye to a god and Percy was worth the wait. 

“Plus there will be curfews. Obviously in the morning you are expected to be back by breakfast for the reading.”

“Naturally.” Apollo agreed.

“I won’t make you have a chaperone.” Poseidon smirked. Apollo grimaced. He hadn’t even thought about that. “I was tempted but I know you’ve also been helping Percy with some of his issues and I know that is private. I will, however, be keeping an eye on you.” 

“Fair enough.” Apollo nodded. He swallowed sharply. This talk was doing nothing to calm his nerves. 

“I’m sure we’ll talk again, once Percy has said yes, but for now, I will leave you to get ready.” Poseidon said.

“Yeah. Thanks.” Apollo muttered. The sea god gave him a smile before clapping him on the shoulder.

“Percy likes you a lot. I know that much. And I know you like him. But if you hurt my son I will make you regret it for the rest of eternity.”

“I would never.” He vowed. Poseidon nodded and then left. Apollo was glad that the conversation was over but now that he was alone he began to panic again. He busied himself making sure everything was perfect. He had been planning to take breakfast with them but now Poseidon had said they had to be back for breakfast. Well, Percy always seemed to be hungry. It wouldn’t hurt to take something with them...just in case. 

***********************

Percy woke to someone shaking him. Looking around blearily, he saw his father standing over him with his hand on his shoulder. 

“Apollo is here for you.” Suddenly Percy didn’t feel sleepy anymore. He was wide awake. Poseidon left and Percy slowly dragged himself from the bed to get dressed. He showered in record time and then found himself frantically looking through his closet for something to wear. Then he wondered why he cared. It was just Apollo. Finally, he threw on a shirt and jeans and then emerged into the front room. Poseidon and Triton were both there. Apollo must be waiting outside. 

“Nice bedhead.” Triton smirked. Percy frantically ran a hand through his hair and frowned when it all felt fine.

“Don’t tease him.” Poseidon told Triton. “Be nice.” 

“Yes, dad.” Triton said but the grin on his face suggested he had no intention of being nice. Percy decided to leave before his brother decided to keep talking.

“Have a good time.” His dad told him as he made his way to the door. Percy opened it and Apollo was standing on the other side, a tentative smile on his face. 

“Ready to go?” He asked. Percy nodded. Apollo led him out to the gardens. Then they took a path he hadn’t been down before and at the end of it stood what looked like a sleigh. Harnessed to it were four palomino horses. “Percy, meet Aethon, Pyrois, Phlegon and Eous.” He pointed at each horse in turn. 

“I thought it was a chariot?” Percy blurted out. Apollo chuckled.

“I was going to but the sleigh is more comfortable. And you can sit down which I thought you might be more comfortable with.” Percy nodded. That made sense.

“Thanks.” He said. They got in and it was then Percy noticed a large strange shaped lump hidden under some cloth along with a basket sitting on the seat. He found a seat and Apollo sat down next to him. He took the reins and the horses set off without warning. Percy was taken by surprise and was thrown sideways, straight into Apollo. Blushing, he righted himself, apologising.

“Don’t worry about it.” Apollo laughed. For a couple of minutes, Percy watched the scenery passing by below them. The sun god had been right. The view was completely worth it. The heat from the chariot made sure he wasn’t cold and the light it gave off gave him the perfect view. “I got this for you. As promised.” Apollo finally spoke. He picked up the strangely shaped parcel and handed it to him. Percy looked at it curiously before removing the cloth as gaping. In his hands was a guitar shaped like a lyre. The neck was made of a dark brown wood with streaks so dark they were nearly black. The main body of it was clearly made of the same wood but had been painted the most gorgeous shades of blue and green that were arranged to look like waves and after staring at it for a moment, Percy realised the image was actually moving. Gentle waves moved across the face of the guitar and then disappeared around the side. Percy turned it over and saw the back had been painted the same colour. 

“It’s beautiful.” He whispered. Definitely better than anything he could have dreamed of.

“You like it?” Apollo asked. Percy was surprised to note that the god sounded nervous.

“I love it.” Percy beamed. “I can’t wait to actually learn how to play this.” 

“I’ll be happy to teach you.” 

“Great.”

“There was something else I wanted to talk to you about. The main reason I asked you to come with me this morning.” Percy looked up from the guitar and up at the god. He was biting his lip and looking even more nervous. 

“What’s that?” He asked in concern. Apollo’s reaction had him a bit worried.

“Well...I was wondering if you would like to...er, well would you like to go out with me?” He stuttered. Percy’s brow furrowed and Apollo hurried to clarify before the demigod could point out they were already out. “As in date me. Like a boyfriend.” Percy had opened his mouth to say something and then it continued to hang open as he absorbed what Apollo had just asked.

“I...er...what?” He couldn’t seem to find proper words. Apollo’s face fell slightly. “I mean...you’re a god.”

“I had noticed.” Apollo’s tone was clipped.

“And I’m...just me. A demigod.”

“You are many things Percy Jackson, but you are not ‘just’ anything.” Percy blushed and looked down at the guitar in his hands to avoid those golden eyes.

“I like you…” Percy began.

“I know there is a lot to consider.” Apollo cut in before Percy could say ‘but’. “I’m not asking you to make a choice about immortality or anything major right now. I’m asking for a chance to try this out and see what happens? See if this is as special as I think it could be.” And Percy’s resolve crumbled. He  _ did  _ want to see what happened with this. Sure, there was a lot to work out, including the fact that they weren’t even from the same time but he wanted to know. Something told him he would regret it if he didn’t give it a shot.

“Alright.” He nodded.

“Alright?” Apollo asked, hope and fear warring on his face.

“I want to give us a try.” Percy said with a tentative smile. The smile that graced Apollo’s face almost blinded him as if he had looked straight into the sun. It seemed the god had forgotten that he had his powers back now they had left Olympus. Thankfully the light disappeared and then Apollo was taking the guitar out of his hands. He put it down gently on the sleigh floor and then pulled Percy into a tight hug. Apollo buried his face in Percy’s hair and inhaled the scent of salt and clean air. He couldn’t stop grinning. 

Percy pressed his face against Apollo’s chest and smiled. Despite all of his reservations he couldn’t deny that it felt right. Apollo was radiating ridiculous amounts of heat now that he was a god again. It felt good against the breeze that was whipping past them.

“So...does this..?” Percy couldn’t finish his question.

“It doesn’t need to change anything. Not really. We still hang out when we’re reading and have archery practise. Now, I just might kiss you every now and again.” Apollo smirked as Percy jerked upright. He stared at Apollo and then grinned back, suddenly looking shy. 

“Sounds like a good plan to me.” He said. 

“May I?” Apollo asked quietly. Having checked the sky he knew their time was almost up. Percy nodded, mouth suddenly too dry to speak. Apollo leaned forwards and pressed a gentle kiss to Percy’s forehead. Then he slowly moved down and kissed him on the tip of the nose. Percy startled and then laughed lightly. Apollo pulled back enough to grin at him before he leant back in and kissed him on the mouth. It was the lightest touch and Percy barely registered it was happening before the sleigh lurched and he was thrown forwards headbutting Apollo.

“Ow!” The sun god yelped.

“Oh, gods. I’m sorry.” Percy gasped.

“Don’t worry. I’m going to kill those horses.” Apollo grumbled. “They did that on purpose.”

“Why?”

“Because they are stupid. And annoying.” The god grumbled. 

“So they take after you then.” Percy chuckled. 

“Hey! Don’t be so mean.” Apollo pouted at him. “But we should get back. Your dad said I had to have you back by breakfast.” Percy sighed. He didn’t really want to go back to the readings. Here, he could forget that his every thought was being read allowed. Apollo grabbed his arm and the guitar before teleporting them back to the gardens. The horses needed to continue the journey and take the sun chariot around the world. 

Once they were standing on solid ground, Apollo put the guitar down and grabbed Percy gently by the back of his neck. Then he leant forwards and kissed him firmly. Percy melted against him and Apollo let go of his arm so he could hold his waist to steady him. The kiss only lasted a few seconds and then Apollo pulled back, grinning widely. 

“Breakfast time.” He said. Percy grinned in return, feeling rather too breathless for words. Apollo pulled him through the gardens and to the dining room. The Hermes kids were there already, as were Poseidon, Amphitrite and Triton. They all turned to look as Apollo and Percy came in. Poseidon raised an eyebrow and Percy grinned happily. The sea god smiled. “I’m just going to put this away.” Apollo indicated the guitar in his hand. Percy nodded.

“Thanks.” Percy smiled. He squeezed Apollo’s hand gratefully and then joined his father for breakfast. 

Over the next half an hour people trickled into the dining hall. Eventually they were all fed and ready to continue reading. Percy sat in the middle of one couch with Apollo on one side and Poseidon on the other. Amphitrite was on Poseidon’s other side with Triton next to her. Hades and Persephone rounded off that end of the couch. Grover sat next to Apollo with Rachel on his other side. Reyna came to sit next to Rachel, having struck up a friendship with the mortal. Octavian sat beside Reyna, clearly unhappy with proceedings. 

Dakota and Pollux sat on either side of their father. Gwen sat on Dakota’s other side. Leo, Beckendorf and Tyson were all sitting at workbenches working on projects. Hephaestus sat nearby on a chair giving them occasional advice. Ares and Aphrodite sat together. Silena was on Aphrodite’s other side with Piper next to her. Jason sat next to Piper with Thalia next to him and then Annabeth next to her. Zeus, Hera, Athena, Hestia and Demeter all sat together. Demeter was glaring at Persephone and Hades while Hera glowered at Zeus. Hermes sat with his children and Clarisse on one side and Nico, Will, Hazel and Frank on the other.

“I shall read.” Amphitrite offered. Grover shrugged and handed her the book. 


	11. We Play the Game Show of Death

“Er...that doesn’t sound like fun.” Leo said.

“It wasn’t.” Percy told him.

“Oooh, I hated this.” Annabeth grumbled. She couldn’t believe the stupid Sphinx had decided to change the riddle to a bunch of random questions. 

**We did our summons after dark...mood of summoning the dead.**

Everybody chuckled a little at this.

**The moon was full. Silver clouds drifted...“Maybe he got lost,” I said hopefully.**

Everybody snickered at this, except Octavian who rolled his eyes. Reyna’s glare stopped him from opening his mouth. Not to mention, he was still a little awed by the god’s presence.

“Ghost’s don’t get lost.” Hades told his nephew. “Especially as Minos has an active interest in Nico.” He added with a grimace.

**Nico poured root beer and tossed...This was unnatural.**

Nico sighed. As usual, Percy’s instincts were right on track.

**The night air felt cold and menacing...even in death his eyes were alive with malice.**

“Oh great.” Will groaned. “He made it.”

“Yeah, I guess the sacrifice would have summoned him.” Hazel said with a frown. She hoped Nico sent him away.

**“Minos!” Nico said...protect you from these liars who would deceive you.”**

“You’re the liar.” Persephone snapped.

**He turned to me as if I were...haven’t improved over the centuries, have they?”**

Poseidon and Triton both gritted their teeth. 

**I wanted to punch him, but I figured my fist would go right through his face.**

“Sadly.” Thalia sighed. She had just been thinking the same thing. 

“Riptide might bother him.” Rachel suggested.

“Not massively.” Percy told her grimly. “They generally try to keep away from celestial bronze but Minos didn’t seem overly bothered.”

**“We’re looking for Bianca di Angelo,”...“Do not changed the subject!” the ghost growled.**

“You brought the topic up.” Hazel rolled her eyes.

**“You are hindering Nico...“You mean Chris Rodriguez? That was you?”**

“WHAT?” Hermes and Clarisse yelled at the same time.

“Minos did that?” Hermes asked angrily. “You’d better punish him.” He turned to glare at Hades.

“He’s a judge of the Underworld.” Hades said. “Protected by Zeus.”

“Then unprotect him.” Hermes looked at his father. “Get another judge.” Zeus spluttered at this. 

“I…”

“No. Minos has already proven to have ill intentions and now he deliberately drove my son mad.” 

“Your son was a traitor.” Zeus snapped.

“That does not mean he deserved to be made insane.” Percy scowled. “Nobody deserves that.” Apollo squeezed his hand, ready to intervene if his father turned his wrath on Percy. Octavian leant forwards to get a better look at Percy. He knew from the previous books that this... _greek_...was utterly disrespectful of the gods but to see it in action was something else. Even if the gods were mortal he could not believe the stupid boy had not been destroyed.

“Yeah, dad. What if it had been me? Or Jason?” Thalia put in before the king of the gods could answer.

“You would never betray us.” Zeus frowned at his daughter. The idea was unthinkable.

“I almost did.” She reminded him. “I was tempted by the power. If I had given in to it would you think I deserved to be made insane?” Thalia questioned. Zeus opened his mouth and then shut it again a few moments later. He had no answer. Hera was glaring at him but he could not honestly condemn his daughter to that fate. Instead he simply settled for glowering at the floor.

“Well?” Hermes demanded. “Will he be punished?”

“Once we have finished here, I will withdraw my protection.” Zeus allowed grudgingly. “Do as you will.” He told Hades who nodded. He had his own reasons to punish Minos.

**“The maze is my property,”...Those who intrude deserve madness.”**

Hermes, the Stolls and Clarisse all gritted their teeth angrily. Everyone else glared at the book. 

**“Be gone, Minos!” Nico demanded...You cannot trust these heroes.”**

“Of course I can.” Nico muttered angrily.

“You know now.” Will soothed. 

**With that, he faded into mist...“Any time now,” Grover muttered.**

“Yes, hurry.” Hades murmured. 

**Then a silvery light flickered in the trees...“Hello, Percy,” she said.**

“Ouch.” Will muttered unhappily. After all the trouble Nico had been through to summon his sister she spoke to Percy first?

“Seriously?” Hazel asked, eyes wide. “She said hello to Percy before her own brother?” 

“She didn’t want Nico to summon her.” Hades sighed. He knew his daughter was trying to protect Nico but this was likely just going to make him angrier and more likely to lash out at Percy.

“A hello to her brother first wouldn’t kill her. If she didn’t want Nico to summon her she could have ignored this call too. It would have been nicer than showing up to blatantly ignore him.” Will said, feeling angry on Nico’s behalf.

“It’s ok.” Nico told him.

“No. It’s not.” Will shot back quietly.

**She looked the same as she had in life...the outfit of a Hunter of Artemis.**

Artemis and Hades both looked down in sadness.

**A bow was slung over her shoulder...like her death was fresh and new.**

Apollo let go of Percy’s hand and casually slung his arm around Percy’s shoulders, giving him a sideways hug. Percy leant towards the sun god, glad none of his friends were paying attention. He didn’t particularly want to explain what was going on with him and Apollo just yet. Especially with Will and Michael around. That was going to be a weird conversation.

**I remembered searching through...I made my own choice. I don’t regret it.”**

Percy smiled slightly. Back then he hadn’t believed Bianca really. He still felt like it was his fault. Now, after his dad, Apollo and Thalia had all talked to him and now he had relived what had happened he accepted that Bianca didn’t blame him. He would always feel sad that she died but he didn’t feel guilty anymore and it felt like a great weight had been lifted off of him. 

**“Bianca!” Nico stumbled forward...if she’d been dreading this moment.**

Nico recoiled a little. He hadn’t really noticed her expression. He really was trying to remember that Bianca did love him and that she was trying to look out for him but Percy seemed to notice a lot of details that made it hard to believe. 

**“Hello, Nico. You’ve gotten so tall.”...“I was hoping you would give up.”**

“That wasn’t going to happen.” Hazel said.

“I think she meant she hoped he would give up on his idea of a soul for a soul. I think that if Nico had just wanted to talk to her to say goodbye rather than to bring her back she would have answered.” Percy said. 

“Well she could have appeared and told him not to.” Octavian rolled his eyes. 

“He wouldn’t have listened.” Annabeth said. 

“He might have done, if we hadn’t been there.” Percy pointed out.

**“Give up?” He sounded heartbroken...It is our fatal flaw.**

“How does she know that?” Connor asked curiously.

“It is knowledge she would have gained upon her entrance to the Underworld.” Hades replied, carefully avoiding the word ‘death’.

**You have to forgive...“You sent those Iris-messages.”**

“Now I definitely want to know how a ghost sent Iris messages.” Thalia frowned. 

“She probably communicated with Iris and got her help.” Will said.

**Bianca nodded...Nico screamed. “It’s not fair!”**

“It does seem pretty unfair.” Frank stated. “I’d be pretty unhappy in Nico’s situation.”

**“You are close to the truth now,” Bianca told him. “It’s not Percy you’re mad at, Nico. It’s me.”**

“I was mad at both of them.” Nico said. “But mostly Bianca, she was right.”

**“No.”...It will be your doom.”**

“Yeah. If Kronos finds out about Nico he could easily turn Nico even more against Percy. And then against the gods.” Clarisse nodded.

“But we avoided that.” Percy put in quickly before Zeus could get twitchy.

**“She’s right,” Annabeth broke in...“I’m the son of Hades! I can.”**

“I know, I know.” Nico groaned when he caught the look on his father’s face. Hades gave him a smile. 

**“Don’t try,” she said...Their voices whispered,**

“Hurry up.” Persephone said.

**Danger!...“Your power draws the attention of Kronos.**

“That’s not good.” Hermes muttered.

“You don’t say.” Apollo rolled his eyes looking amused.

**The dead must return to the Underworld...and a cold full moon.**

“Lovely.” Travis wrinkled his nose. 

“We’d been in worse places.” Annabeth shrugged.

“At least the dead were gone.” Grover said with a shudder.

**None of us were anxious to travel that night, so we decided to wait until morning.**

“Definitely a good plan.” Poseidon nodded.

“They need to hurry.” Athena pointed out.

“It’s better that they get some rest.” Dionysus stated.

**Grover and I crashed on the leather...didn’t make my nightmares any better.**

“Of course not.” Triton groaned.  
  


“Nothing makes the nightmares better.” Percy muttered. “Demigod dreams suck.”

**I dreamed I was with Luke...half-finished illusion like I’d seen last winter.**

The gods all exchanged anxious looks. That was not a good sign.

**Green fires burned in braziers along the walls...Kelli the empousa was smiling at him.**

“Not her again.” Rachel complained. “I hate her.”

“So do I.” Percy agreed.

**She wore a blue dress tonight...The monster Kampê towered above him.**

“That’s not good.” Connor muttered.

“Nothing about Percy’s dreams are good.” Travis pointed out.

“Yeah but with Briares gone she has no reason to stay at the prison. She can wander around with the rest of Kronos’ army.” Ares said.

**Her snakes hissed around her legs...“You will go with us.**

All of the Greek demigods exchanged grim looks. They easily recalled Kampe attacking the camp.

**You may carry Ariadne’s string...“She is too chaotic. Too powerful.”**

“Tell us about it.” Will muttered. 

**Kelli laughed softly...“I didn’t say that.”**

All of the Greek campers glowered at the book. On the plus side, Luke hadn’t actually been present during the attack on camp. Then they would have been really screwed.

**“You’re not having second thoughts about your own, ah, special part?”**

Annabeth cringed while everyone else looked particularly grim. Hermes looked around at the bleak expressions and swallowed his own building fear. 

“That doesn’t sound good.” Hazel noted. Frank looked around at the expressions on his new friend’s faces and guessed that they already knew what Luke’s fate would be.

**Luke’s face turned stony. “I know my duty.”...Or will I need to call Mother Hecate for help?”**

Zeus’ face turned thunderous. He began grumbling under his breath once more.

“We already knew she had sided with them.” Hera reminded her husband sharply. 

“And we decided we cannot punish them for something they have yet to do.” Poseidon put in with a glance towards his son. Percy grinned at him gratefully.

“Father’s plan has been in motion for a long time before your son arrived at Camp Half-Blood.” Zeus pointed out. “They may already be working for him now, in this time.”

“They are not foolish.” Hades said. “They would be careful not to pick a side until they thought he had a chance of winning.” 

“Either way there is little we can do until we finish reading all of the books anyway.” Hestia reminded them all. Zeus nodded reluctantly.

**“We have more than enough,”...“I am bringing despair to your eavesdropping enemies.**

“I’m guessing she’s noticed you are there.” Triton grimaced.

“Yes but you know you need to hurry. Luke has almost everything he needs.” Frank said. Percy sighed. He had been the one to give Luke the final piece. Admittedly he hadn’t had much choice but to kill Antaeus but still...it sucked.

**I am doing that right now.”...“Uncle!” a voice called.**

Athena stiffened, her face full of sadness. 

**A smiling boy about Nico’s age came...but Daedalus nodded grudgingly. “I see. Not bad.”**

“He doesn’t sound very happy about his nephew’s success.” Reyna noted.

“He wasn’t happy about it.” Percy muttered.

**“The king loved it!” Perdix said. “He said I might be even smarter than you!”**

“Ooh. Not a thing to say to a child of Athena.” Travis winced.

“Excuse me?” Annabeth glared at him.

“Er...what’s your fatal flaw?” He reminded her. She grimaced. 

“Plus it sounds like Daedalus wasn’t that fond of his nephew anyway, he certainly won’t like him thinking that he is smarter than Daedalus.” Connor pointed out.

**“Did he now?”...why does a man have to die, anyway?”**

“Because that is the natural order of things.” Hades stated firmly.

**The inventor scowled...Why not a bronze form for a man?”**

“He wants to put someone’s soul into an automaton?” Hazel gaped.

“Ambitious isn’t he?” Frank muttered.

**“No, my boy,” Daedalus said sharply...I’ve made some notes.”**

“Definitely a clever kid.” Leo said, mind whirling furiously.

“Don’t even think about it.” Hephaestus told his son sternly. “Some things should not be messed with.” Leo nodded.

**He handed the old man a thick scroll...But my voice didn’t work.**

“It wouldn’t. You can’t change the past.” Apollo told him.

“Yeah. It just sucks having to watch it sometimes.” Percy gave him a small smile.

“I know.” 

**Perdix wound up the beetle and tossed it...too soft for the boy to hear.**

“Oh dear, his pride has been wounded.” Thalia sighed.

**“Is it true that your son died flying, Uncle? I heard you made him enormous wings, but they failed.”**

“Stop talking.” Beckendorf urged the boy even though it was pointless.

**Daedalus’s hands clenched...Do you think I could?”**

“It’s like the kid is trying to anger him. He’s pushing pretty much every button.” Reyna mused. “Talking about the king, saying he is cleverer than Daedalus and now mentioning his son and saying he would make wings that didn’t fail. In one conversation he’s mentioned every single thing that would upset the inventor.” 

“Yep. Kid’s got a big mouth.” Octavian scoffed. “Why do we care about this?”

“Because when you want to bargain with someone, knowing about them is helpful.” Annabeth told him.

**Maybe it was a dream within my dream...Choose, he whispered to the old inventor. Choose.**

Athena frowned. Janus had had a hand in this? Not that it made up for what her son had done but it was something she hadn’t known at the time.

**Daedalus picked up another one of the boy’s...He did not move from his spot.**

“He’s going to let his nephew die?” Gwen asked.

**“Go on, Perdix,” Daedalus said softly. “May your own wings. Be quick about it.”**

“That’s cruel.” Leo frowned.

“Yeah. Who taunts a kid while they let them die?” Piper said angrily. 

**“Uncle!” the boy cried as he lost his grip...But in the meantime…”**

“I get his point, it sounds like his life sucked but that doesn’t give him an excuse to kill someone.” Jason said.

**He picked up the boy’s scroll...making everything go black.**

“Why do you always seem to get hurt by what happens in your dreams?” Annabeth asked in concern.

“No idea.” Percy shrugged. “At least it doesn’t carry over to real life. Given my luck I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“It’s something to think about.” Apollo said, more to himself than to Percy. Combined with all the other strange things that seemed to happen with Percy surrounding prophetic things. His affinity for working out prophecies and his ability to know when he wasn’t coming back to a place for a while. Which could be written off once as just gut instinct but it seems to happen every time Percy leaves for an unexpected quest. 

**I woke in the dark, my hands...He sniffled. “I miss Juniper.”**

“Juniper misses you too. You need to come back to Camp soon.” Percy told him.

“I haven’t been gone that long.” Grover frowned.

“Dude, you haven’t checked in for like six weeks or so.” Percy looked at him strangely. 

“That’s impossible.” Grover’s eyes were wide.

“Maybe you were travelling somewhere time went a bit wonky?” Thalia suggested.

“I was in Central Park.” 

“Ok, New York does do many strange things but it doesn’t change time.” Annabeth frowned.

“I guess we’ll find the answers in the books.” Percy said grimly. Nobody messed with his friends.

**I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes...Seven days since we left camp.”**

“That’s not good.” Thalia said.

“Grover’s time is up with the Council.” Gwen remembered.

“Still, they’ve only been in the maze for like two days. That’s a big difference to have been gone from the real world for a week.” Silena frowned.

**“What?” I said. “That can’t be right.”...mouth and crunched off the end of it.**

Most people chuckled despite the situation.

“Really, Grover? The remote?” Thalia rolled her eyes. “You couldn’t eat the furniture instead?”

“We needed that to sleep on.” Annabeth reminded her friend.

**“I’m out of time,” he said with a mouthful...I wish I could be more like you.”**

“You don’t want to be me...trust me.” Percy told him. “Besides, you do great. I couldn’t be a hero without you and Annabeth there to help me.” 

**“Hey,” I said. “Don’t say that...I can’t even face myself.”**

Hermes looked at the Satyr with a mixture of gratitude and sympathy. 

**His voice was so unhappy it hurt to hear...“You haven’t failed.**

“Percy’s right. You’ve gotten further than anyone else in searching for Pan.” Piper pointed out. “It was you that Pan sent a blessing of the wild to. It was you he spoke to.” 

“Thanks, Piper.” Grover gave her a smile. 

**You’re the champion goat boy, all right?...Perdix reminded me of Nico.**

“In that case you should keep him away from Daedalus.” Hazel said.

“Yeah, Nico might start talking and he’d probably upset him.” Will grinned. “Maybe he’ll want to know how many attack points an inventor has.”

“Oh shut up.” Nico rolled his eyes but he was smiling slightly.

**He shook his head...three sizes too big even for a grown man.**

Everybody laughed, imagining Nico drowning in a dressing gown.

“You looked ridiculous.” Percy told him with a smirk.

“I felt it too.” Nico admitted.

**“I need time to think.”...not for him didn’t seem to sit well with him.**

“I can’t imagine why.” Will muttered sarcastically.

**“Nico,” Annabeth said...morning mist seemed to cling to him as he walked.**

“You noticed that?” Nico frowned.

“I notice everything.” Percy said with a smirk.

**“I’m worried about him,”...He’ll be safe, I promise.”**

Ares nodded, pleased by his son’s new appearance. Maybe he could start living the immortal life he should have from the beginning.

**“What about you?” I asked...No more sacred cattle meat.**

“I should think not.” Apollo snapped. “I’m never leaving my sacred cows in your care ever again.”

“Eurytion will take good care of them.” Annabeth said.

“Until Geryon reforms and takes over again. I’m not taking chances.” Apollo glowered at the book. Percy shifted a little so he was leaning more heavily against the sun god’s side. Apollo squeezed his shoulders.

**I’m thinking about soybean patties...But Hephaestus probably would.”**

“That’s what Hera said too.” Hermes remembered.

“Oh good.” Hephaestus grunted sarcastically. He didn’t like interruptions.

**“That’s what Hera said,”...he wanted to play on my dad, Ares, and Aphrodite.**

“He helped you to trick us?” Ares glared at his brother.

“He was most useful.” Hephaestus smirked.

“My own son.” Ares snarled.

**He gave me that chain in gratitude...much to Eurytion’s confusion.**

“A spider? Seriously?” Thalia said, fighting the urge to chuckle. “You really don’t have much luck with Hephaestus do you? First the trip to get Ares’ shield and now this.”

“I know.” Annabeth sighed.

**“Spider!” she screamed...and we dropped back into the maze.**

Apollo, Poseidon, Athena and Dionysus all looked worried once more. 

**I wish I could’ve put the mechanical...never would’ve known which way it was going.**

“Yeah, you two did great.” Percy said. Tyson blushed a little but smiled happily. He had been glad to help.

**We ran down a marble tunnel...hauled me back before I could fall.**

“Thanks, big guy.” Percy said.

“Good catch.” Poseidon told his son. Tyson beamed proudly at the praise.

“Couldn’t let my brother fall.” He declared.

**The tunnel continued in front of us...her death from a set of monkey bars. Go figure.**

“Fears aren’t rational.” Clarisse muttered. Percy nodded.

**Annabeth got to the opposite side...(or was it a goatyback ride?).**

Everybody laughed.

“Really, Percy?” Nico asked in amusement.

“If it worked like that, wouldn’t it be a humanyback ride not a piggyback one.” Leo wondered curiously.

“Humanyback?” Percy asked, trying not to laugh.

“You are both weird.” Piper declared.

“We know.” Percy and Leo said together.

**the big guy made it across in three swings...hundreds of them, all broken in half.**

“Interesting.” Will frowned.

“No. Bad.” Percy said with a grimace. Annabeth scowled.

**The tunnel opened up onto a large room...Others were more recent and a lot grosser.**

“Oh yuck.” Silena wrinkled her nose.

“Very.” Grover agreed. “Yuck doesn’t even really cover it.”

**They didn’t smell quite as bad as Geryon’s stables, but almost.**

“Yeah, and you don’t have an advanced sense of smell.” Grover muttered. Percy winced in sympathy.

**Then I saw the monster...body of a huge lion and the head of a woman.**

“A Sphinx.” Piper said in awe.

**She would’ve been pretty...THIS MONSTER HAS BEEN RATED EXEMPLARY!**

A few people chuckled.

**Tyson whimpered. “Sphinx.”...Sphinx’s paws and disappeared.**

Poseidon frowned as Tyson shuddered. 

“You were super brave.” Percy told his brother.

**Annabeth started forward, but...throwing disco glitter over the skeletons on the floor.**

“Oookay.” Silena looked a little weirded out. As did most people.

“That’s disturbing for many reasons.” Beckendorf said.

**“Fabulous prizes!” the Sphinx said...Who will be our contestant?”**

“Annabeth, obviously.” Connor grinned. 

**Annabeth grabbed my arm...Annabeth was the best one of us to try.**

Athena smiled proudly towards her daughter. She was surprised to find Annabeth looking angry rather than pleased.

“How do you know what she will ask?” Jason asked.

“In the olden days the Sphinx always asked the same question.” Annabeth told him through gritted teeth. He nodded. Judging by her reaction he guessed something had gone wrong.

**She stepped forward to the...“Twenty riddles, actually!” the Sphinx said gleefully.**

“What?” Chris asked.

“Twenty? That’s quite a few.” Katie muttered in concern.

“Annabeth can do it.” Connor said confidently. 

**“What? But back in the old days—”...must show proficiency in all twenty. Isn’t that great?”**

“Great isn’t the word I would use.” Rachel said grimly.

**Applause switched on and off...“What…is the capital of Bulgaria?”**

“That’s not a riddle.” Athena stated in confusion.

“Yeah. Apparently the Sphinx decided to just ask twenty random questions.” Percy said.

“That’s ridiculous.” The wisdom goddess protested.

“That’s what Annabeth thought.” Grover sighed.

**Annabeth frowned. For a terrible moment...along with a sharpened pencil.**

“I guess that’s where all the broken pencils came from.” Will said.

**“Make sure you bubble each answer...the mark of Hephaestus.**

“You helped her with this nonsense?” Athena glared at Hephaestus.

“She wanted a machine, I made her one.” He shrugged. “Didn’t ask questions.” 

**“Now,” said the Sphinx, “next question—”...“You already knew the answer.**

“I sort of see her point.” Gwen said. 

“What?” Dakota frowned.

“Well Sphinx’s are normally used for guarding things but what’s the point if everyone knows the answer to the riddle she will ask?” Gwen pointed out. “While I think twenty random questions is a bit strange, and excessive, I can understand her wanting to change the riddle.” 

“I guess that makes sense.” Pollux nodded.

**Now second question, what is the square root...“Hold up!” Annabeth shouted.**

“You’re getting them right.” Connor pointed out.

“Yes but they weren’t riddles.” Annabeth complained. 

**I wanted to tell her to stop complaining...just answer the questions so we could leave.**

“Annabeth.” Chiron said reprovingly. 

“I know, I know.” She sighed. “But it was a stupid test.”

“The point was to get past the Sphinx not to show off.” He reminded her.

  
“Yeah.” 

**“These aren’t riddles,” Annabeth said...“Stop!” Annabeth insisted. “This is a stupid test.”**

“You’re going to get yourself eaten.” Connor told her. “Just answer the questions.” 

“I know but it was insulting.”

**“Um, Annabeth,” Grover cut in nervously. “Maybe you should just, you know, finish first and complain later?”**

“Exactly.” Thalia told her friend. “Once you pass the test you can complain all you like.”

**“I’m a child of Athena,” she insisted.**

Octavian tutted loudly.

“Not now.” Reyna hissed at him.

“It’s a disgrace.” He hissed back.

“You got a problem?” Connor asked the Roman with distaste.

“This girl claims to be a daughter of Minerva.” Octavian made a disgusted face. “She is a _virgin_ goddess.”

“I advise you to stop talking, _Roman_.” Athena said furiously. Octavian shut his mouth quickly. He may not think much of Minvera but he wasn’t willing to disobey a direct order from the goddess. “How dare you insinuate that my daughter is lying or question the fact that I am a virgin.”

“Athena’s children are born the same way their mom was, although as babies not fully grown. They are born from thought, not intercourse.” Will explained sending Octavian his own glare.

**“And this is an insult to my intelligence...her pride was going to get us all killed.**

“And it nearly did.” Percy muttered. Poseidon glared at the daughter of Athena. 

“Sorry.” Annabeth said through gritted teeth.

**The spotlights glared...had such a bad experience with a Sphinx before.**

“Go Tyson!” Everyone except Octavian cheered. Tyson blushed.

“Thanks, Tyson.” Annabeth said, giving him a smile. He grinned back toothily.

“Well done, son. You were very brave.” Poseidon told him.

“Cheering for a monster.” Octavian muttered disdainfully.

“Be quiet.” Reyna hissed at him. She glanced around to make sure nobody else had heard. 

**He tackled the Sphinx in midair...“The Sphinx is after you! Let us get it.”**

“He’s got a point.” Connor said. “Besides, you can still fight it if you’ve invisible.”

**As if to prove my point...Grover poked her in the eye with somebody’s leg bone.**

“Nice work, Grover.” Thalia cheered.

“Gross but good work.” Rachel nodded. Grover nodded.

**She screeched in pain...I could only hope Annabeth was doing the same.**

“I was.” She assured him.

“I gathered that much.” He smirked. “Given that you were with us once we got out.” She stuck her tongue out at him and he laughed.

**The Sphinx started to follow...and the bars slammed shut behind us.**

“Nice going again there Grover.” Thalia smiled.

“And you complain about my music.” He grinned.

“Yes well, it can be horrible and useful at the same time.” She told him with a smirk.He pouted.

**“Annabeth!” I yelled...she would have to grade by hand.**

“The chapter is over.” Amphitrite announced.

“I’ll read.” Triton took the book from his mother. 

“It’s my turn.” Grover pointed out.

“Never mind.” Triton shrugged. “A different order won’t kill us.” He opened the book to the correct page.


	12. I Set Myself on Fire

“You do what now?” Poseidon asked in concern. Percy grimaced. He could guess which part this was and it was not going to be a pretty chapter.

“You’ll find out but you aren’t going to like it.” Percy warned. Poseidon groaned. 

“Why would you set yourself on fire?” Leo asked.

“There weren’t many other options.” Percy shrugged. “We were in a spot of trouble.” 

“You’re always in trouble. You don’t always need to set yourself on fire.” Thalia pointed out. 

“Let’s just read.” Annabeth cut in. Triton looked at the book as if it might burn him but started reading.

**I thought we’d lost the spider...with a Greek Ȇta inscribed in the middle.**

Leo and Beckendorf listened with interest. They hadn’t been to their dad’s workshop before and they were excited to hear what it was like.

**We all looked at each other...“Yes!” Tyson said gleefully, and he turned the wheel.**

Hephaestus gave Tyson a slight smile. He might not like visitors but he did appreciate someone who also had a love of making things.

**As soon as the door opened...Greek war chariot made entirely of flames.**

“Cool.” Clarisse muttered. “Nice chariot.”

“Beyond cool.” Leo said excitedly. “It sounds amazing.” 

“It really does.” Beckendorf agreed. He was pretty jealous of the fact that Percy, Annabeth, Grover and Tyson got to visit. Hephaestus smiled at his sons.

**Smaller projects cluttered a dozen...make his form seem a little less hideous.**

Leo and Beckendorf glared at Percy who sent Hephaestus an apologetic look.

“Please tell me you didn’t actually ask him that?” Poseidon asked, trying not to cringe.

“No.” Percy said. The sea god let out a sigh of relief.

**Here in his own workshop...disassembled it in two seconds, then put it back together.**

“That is pretty awesome.” Frank said.

**“There,” he muttered to himself...“Shoddy workmanship.”**

“Hephaestus.” Aphrodite chided, rolling her eyes.

“Yes, yes.” He waved a hand.

**He studied Annabeth and me...I suppose I won’t have to do it now.”**

“That’s good.” Chris said slowly.

**He looked at Grover and frowned...“Yes, well said,” Hephaestus agreed.**

“Well said?” Hermes raised an eyebrow. “All he said was ‘er’.” 

“Less said the better.” Hephaestus grunted.

**“So, there’d better be a good reason...You dare to seek him out!”**

“So, I’m guessing he doesn’t like Daedalus then.” Travis frowned.

“Based on what we’ve seen of him I’m not surprised.” Connor muttered quietly.

“He didn’t seem that bothered by him in here.” Chris pointed out.

“Maybe he doesn’t know what annoyed him yet?” Travis suggested. “Or maybe here he understands why it’s important.”

**His beard burst into flames and his...Hephaestus nodded, looking unsurprised. “Briares?”**

“You knew he was still alive?” Ares glared at his brother.

“Had a suspicion.” Hephaestus shrugged.

“You didn’t think to mention this?” Zeus looked at his son with a frown.

“Didn’t come up.” He shrugged once more.

**“Yes. He—he was scared...Mount Olympus when she saw my ugly face.”**

“Honestly, you’re still going on about that?” Hera rolled her eyes.

“You threw him off Olympus.” Beckendorf pointed out. 

“It was a mistake.” She huffed.

**“But I thought Zeus did that to you,” I said…well, I don’t fit the image, do I?”**

“Neither do most of us demigods.” Annabeth said grimly.

**He pulled a feather from the falcon’s back...“No worries, I’m used to that.**

“It wasn’t that I don’t like you, I just have bad experiences with your creations.” Percy explained. Hephaestus nodded. He didn’t really care whether the demigod liked him or not but some part of him liked that fact that he wasn’t disliked simply for his appearance as was usually the case.

**What would you ask of me, little demigod?”...That’s an expensive favor.”**

“That’s not a no, just that you want something in return.” Rachel said.

“Yeah.” Percy grimaced. That favour was  _ way _ more expensive than he had expected.

**“You know where he is, then,”...I need a favor done.**

“They are in a hurry.” Athena told him.

**“Name it,” Annabeth said...“always making rash promises. How refreshing!”**

“Coming from a god?” Percy scoffed. “Your entire history is full of gods making rash promises.” Apollo winced.

**He pressed a button on his workbench...Grover said. “Great forests around there.”**

Percy shifted anxiously.

“You ok?” Apollo asked.

“Yeah. Just, you know, ADHD stuff.” Percy said.

“We can take a break after this chapter if you need.” The god promised.

“I think that’s a good idea.” Percy nodded. He didn’t mention that it probably wouldn’t be him that needed the break. It would be everyone else.

**“You’ve been there?” I asked...“What do you want us to do?” I said, “Fight him?”**

The gods all snorted.

“Even for you that would be impossible.” Triton laughed.

  
“Yeah. I know that  _ now _ .” Percy told him.

**Hephaestus snorted. “That would be suicide. The gods themselves ran from Typhon when he was free.**

Most of the gods looked affronted by that description.

**No, pray you never have to see him...You are not gods.”**

“Please tell me you just want them to scout who it is and not fight them.” Poseidon asked. 

“I assume so.” Hephaestus shrugged.

**“Glad you noticed,” I muttered...Humans are much more fragile than automatons.”**

“So why do you think they can succeed if your automatons failed?” Leo asked.

“Humans might be more fragile but they are also much more subtle and stealthy.” Beckendorf told him. 

“Subtle? Have you met Percy?” Nico laughed.

**We were doing okay until we hit...Grover muttered in awe. “This is it.”**

“To my son?” Hermes asked excitedly. 

**“What way?” I asked...A few more seconds and we’d lose it.**

“You’re going to have to split up.” Connor groaned.

“Can’t they come back for that tunnel?” Dakota asked.

“It might have moved by then, or simply disappeared. The Labyrinth keeps changing, remember.” Clarisse pointed out.

**“Well come back,” Annabeth promised...like she didn’t understand at all.**

“I’m sorry, Grover.” She said.

**The spider was almost out of sight...“No!” Annabeth said. “That’s way too dangerous.**

“It’s the only way to complete the quest and help Grover achieve his dream.” Rachel said.

“I know, I just didn’t think splitting up in the Labyrinth was a good idea.” Annabeth explained.

**How will we ever find each other again?...I am not like Hephaestus. I trust friends.”**

Hephaestus grunted while Poseidon looked at his son proudly.

“You are very brave, Tyson.” The sea god told him. 

**Grover took a deep breath...“I hope you’re right,” I said.**

“Thanks, Percy.” Grover said gratefully. He couldn’t say how much his friend’s faith in him meant.

“I knew how much it meant to you.” Percy smiled. How could he stand in the way of his friend’s lifelong dream.

**“I know I am.” I’d never heard him sound...were better than chicken enchiladas.**

“They are.” Grover stated.

“Rubbish. Chicken enchiladas are the best kind.” Will said. Grover glared at him. 

“Let’s not get into this.” Nico rolled his eyes. Triton took that as his cue to keep reading.

**“Be careful,” I told him...“Splitting up is a really, really bad idea.”**

“I guess I was wrong about that. It wasn’t as bad as I’d expected.” Annabeth muttered. “Although we could have used the help.” 

**“We’ll see them again,” I said...It wasn’t long before the tunnel started to get hot.**

“Well, you are going to a volcano.” Leo pointed out.

**The stone walls glowed...I’d never heard that about Athena before. “But then—”**

“How had you not heard that? It’s one of the biggest things about Athena.” Clarisse asked.

“Seriously? Three years at Camp and you didn’t know that?” Will laughed.

“Oh shut up.” Percy blushed. “It’s not like we often talk about which goddesses are virgins. Plus, she had kids. I didn’t think about them being brain children.” 

**“How come she has demigod children?”...that Annabeth didn’t notice.**

“You were blushing.” She told him. 

**“Percy, you know how Athena was born?”...She would tell you that’s the purest kind of love.”**

Athena smiled at her daughter. The Romans all looked intrigued by the idea.

**“So your dad and Athena…so you weren’t…”...Athena on the men she favors.”**

“Do the men know what to expect? I mean, if you don’t go through the pregnancy then they don’t get the same nine month period to get ready to have a baby.” Rachel pointed out.

“They shouldn’t need nine months to prepare for a blessing.” Athena said, looking affronted.

“Parenthood is a big thing. Especially if you aren’t expecting it.” Will frowned. “Look at how Annabeth’s dad reacted.” Athena considered this. She simply didn’t understand.

**“But—”...some things were better left as mysteries.**

A few people chuckled. 

“I don’t blame you.” Thalia laughed.

**The roaring got louder...yankees cap and turned invisible.**

“To be fair, she’s got a much better chance of getting in and out without being noticed.” Connor pointed out.

“Yeah but Percy’s going to be too far away to help if anything goes wrong.” Reyna said.

**I didn’t dare call after her...would Annabeth be safe?**

“Gods are a lot easier to detect than mortals in some cases.” Amphitrite said. 

“What about demigods though?” Nico asked.

“Depends on the monsters and how distracted they are.” Triton told him. “They’ll be able to detect you at some point though.” 

**I looked back at the Labyrinth tunnel...There was nowhere to hide except…the cart.**

“Wonderful.” Poseidon groaned. 

**I scrambled inside and pulled the tarp over me...“Thing weighs a ton.”**

“Percy’s not that heavy.” Rachel teased.

“Oh shut up.” Percy glared at her.

**“It’s celestial bronze,” the other said...Hopefully I was not about to be dumped into a smelting pot.**

“Not a good way to go.” Rachel snorted.

**If they started to tip me over...between a seal’s bark and a dog’s growl.**

“Telkhines.” Poseidon grimaced.

“I cast them into Tartarus.” Zeus frowned.

“Didn’t they just reform?” Rachel asked curiously.

“Being cast into Tartarus is different to being killed.” Grover explained. “It means they should be trapped down there forever but I guess Kronos found a way to free them.”

**There were other sounds too...There will be time for questions afterward.”**

“Young monsters having movie time?” Piper asked in disbelief. 

“Yeah. It was a movie about young telkhines turning into adult monsters.” Percy grimaced.

“Monster puberty?” Rachel looked a little grossed out.

**The voices quieted down...sudden desire to devour human beings.**

“Lovely.” Will muttered.

**These changes are perfectly normal...acne problems caused by working in the forges,**

“That’s a thing?” Silena wrinkled her nose.

“Monsters worry about acne?” Gwen wanted to know.

“Apparently.” Dakota looked bewildered.

**and proper flipper hygiene, and finally it was over...“Zeus is evil!” one monster said.**

Zeus looked affronted at this accusation.

**“He cast us into Tartarus just because...we made the greatest weapon of the Titans!**

“They made the scythe?” Connor frowned. 

“No Cyclops would make such an evil thing.” Poseidon said.

**Nevertheless, Zeus cast us away...snarling things had created Poseidon’s trident?**

“They are very good at what they do.” Poseidon sighed. No matter what they had done, they were fine craftsmen.

**What were they talking about? I’d never even heard of a telekhine.**

“They aren’t commonly talked about because they were all banished to Tartarus.” Chiron stated. “Apparently monster classes need to cover even those who should never have been seen again.” 

“I’m going to need to stay at Camp full time, even after Kronos is defeated, aren’t I?” Percy sighed grimly. 

“Not necessarily, Percy.” Chiron told him gently. Percy glanced up at Apollo. If this worked out, it wasn’t like he could go back to leading a normal life. Dating a god was going to change lots of things. And maybe that didn’t have to be a bad thing. 

“You can live wherever you like. Hopefully, once Kronos is gone there will be fewer monsters out and about so it should be safe for you to stay at home for most of the year.” Apollo told him. He would prefer Percy to become immortal but he knew it would be pointless to pressure him about it. It would have to be his choice.

**“And so, younglings,” the instructor continued...found myself facing a bunch of…dogs.**

“Dogs?” Octavian scoffed.

“Well, part dog anyway.” Percy shrugged.

**Well, their faces were dogs...get something like what I was looking at.**

“Why would you want to combine those two things?” Pollux wondered.

“Why would someone make flesh eating horses?” Nico asked, looking at Poseidon who grimaced.

“It was an accident.” The sea god defended himself.

“I wonder why a lot of monsters look like they do but I guess that’s just how it worked out.” Annabeth said. 

**“A demigod!” one snarled...vaporized the entire front row of monsters.**

“Nice work.” Apollo smiled.

“Yeah but they were probably just the young ones.” Triton pointed out.

“As long as he kills them before they raise the alarm.” Amphitrite said.

**“Back off!” I yelled at the rest...will happen to you right now if you don’t BACK OFF!”**

Everybody chuckled.

“A very important lesson for them to learn.” Grover said.

“Don’t let them back off. Kill them.” Ares rolled his eyes.

**To my surprise, it worked...“CLASS DISMISSED!” and ran for the exit.**

There was more laughter.

“Only you would say that.” Thalia chuckled.

**The monsters charged after me...I ran toward the platform at the center of the lava lake.**

Annabeth and Percy both grimaced, knowing what was coming next. Percy knew it was not going to be pretty. The gods were not going to be happy to learn he was powerful enough to erupt a volcano.

**“Annabeth!” I yelled...“You want to get us killed?”**

“Best be quiet.” Athena warned. 

“Yeah, try not to lead them to exactly where you are.” Triton said in concern.

**I found her head and took off her Yankees cap...“It needs another cooling in blood to fuse the metals.”**

“Father’s scythe.” Hades breathed.

“I thought he already had it.” Hermes frowned.

“No. He had a manifestation of it.” Poseidon recalled. “The sword that Luke has is only a manifestation. They are recreating the real thing.”

“They must be stopped.” Zeus growled.

“There are too many of them for two demigods to take out.” Demeter pointed out. “Maybe with Tyson and Grover they would stand a chance but not just the two of them.” 

**“Aye,” a second said. “It shall be even sharper...but Zeus banished them to Tartarus.”**

“You do not want to know.” Zeus stated grimly.

“Some magics should never be spoken of, let alone practised.” Hades agreed with his brother.

**“With Kronos.”...Annabeth shrieked. “No! I’m not leaving you.”**

“Listen to the boy.” Athena told her daughter.

“Someone needs to tell me what is using my forges.” Hephaestus said. “I need to warn the other gods.”

“Not at the expense of Percy.” Poseidon growled. “He can't fight them all alone.”

**“I’ve got a plan. I’ll distract them...She kissed me.**

Apollo made a choking sound like someone had just punched him in the gut. Percy and Annabeth both went bright red.

“I hate these books.” Percy complained. Annabeth frowned. That was hardly the most embarrassing thing the books had revealed.

“About time.” Thalia cheered. “Wait...you kissed and you’re still not together?”

“Thalia…” Percy said warningly as Apollo grew even tenser beside him.

“What?”

“I don’t like Annabeth that way.” He admitted. Annabeth looked crushed. She knew Percy had been pulling away from her since they got here but she had been certain he still had a crush on her. “She still likes Luke and I don’t want to be a backup choice. Besides, these books helped me realise I like someone else.” Percy continued. Rachel looked up hopefully but he refused to say who it was. 

While Connor hated seeing Annabeth hurt he couldn’t help but feel slightly happy about Percy’s admission. It certainly took the sting out of hearing that Annabeth had kissed Percy. He wanted to go over and comfort her but it looked like Thalia had that covered. He would just have to wait. 

Annabeth watched as Percy determinedly avoided her gaze. In a way, deep down, she had known it coming but that didn’t mean his words hurt any less. But despite the hurt, it settled some of the conflict inside of her. The choice between Percy and Luke had been hovering over her for years now and the choice had finally been taken out of her hands. It lifted a weight from her but also made her sad. Percy had chosen someone else and Luke was being possessed by Kronos. Not to mention he thought of her like a little sister. Was she doomed to only like guys who would never like her back? Thalia squeezed her arm and gave her a sympathetic look. 

“You ok?” She asked quietly.

“I will be.” Annabeth said slowly. “I think.”

Apollo tried not to glare too hard at Annabeth, not wanting to give away anything but it was difficult. He knew Percy wasn’t ready for them to go public yet, even if his immediate family knew and Apollo agreed. They had so much to sort out between them, including the fact that his kids were here. They deserved to find out from him personally. Still, hearing that she had kissed Percy made him want to rip her head off. Or curse her. Sadly he didn’t have his powers so neither of those were an option. Also, it would hurt Percy if he killed his friend. He concentrated on recalling his kiss with Percy that morning. 

“Hey, I chose to give us a shot. I meant it.” Percy whispered to him, squeezing his hand. “If you’re not careful you might actually turn green and I don’t think that’s your colour.” Apollo gave a half laugh.

“It’s not really.” The sun god gave him a lopsided grin. “Any more kisses I should know about?”

  
“No.” Percy told him. “Not that I remember anyway.” 

“Well, if you can’t remember them then I don’t have much to worry about.” Apollo laughed. Poseidon smiled at the conversation between his son and Apollo. It seemed Percy was certainly good for the hot tempered sun god. Whether the sun god was good for his son remained to be seen but he seemed to be.

**“Be careful, Seaweed Brain.”...trying to remember what my name was,**

Apollo glowered, practically growling in irritation. 

“You’re cute when you’re jealous.” Percy told him with a smirk. Apollo raised an eyebrow. He had been called many things when in a jealous rage but cute was not one of them. 

**but the sea demons jarred me back to reality...unfinished whatever-it-was scared me worse.**

“With good reason.” Poseidon said as worry came flooding back. He didn’t want Percy anywhere near that blade. He had been lucky enough to survive an encounter with the manifestation, he would  _ not  _ survive an encounter with the real thing.

**The elder demons got over their surprise...each of them had covered an exit.**

“That’s not good.” Triton muttered anxiously. “Now would be a good time for Annabeth to reappear and kill one.” 

**The tallest one snarled...nothing as we were cast into the pit.**

“It would have done no good.” Poseidon stated. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Zeus glared at his brother.

“That you’re hard headed.” 

“Coming from you?”

“Both of you are hard headed.” Demeter cut in, rolling her eyes.

“Not to mention, if they didn’t want to be cast into the pit then they shouldn’t have practised such magic.” Hades added.

**We will see him sliced to pieces...I wished I hadn’t been lying to Annabeth.**

Annabeth glared at him.

“You lied?”

“You didn’t think what happened was actually my plan did you?” Percy asked with a strangled laugh.

“It is you.” She pointed out. He shrugged and grinned sheepishly.

“Fair enough.”

“You sacrificed your life to get her to safety?” Apollo asked, trying to control his raging anger, concern and jealousy.

“She had the invisible hat. Annabeth had the best chance of sneaking out and warning Hephaestus about what was going on.” Percy pointed out. “She needed to continue the quest and save Camp. That’s why I did it.”

“Besides, he obviously made it out alive.” Triton reminded them, although he was leaning forward to watch his brother in concern. He couldn’t imagine how he had managed to get out of this mess unless Annabeth came back but judging by her reaction that wasn’t what happened.

**I’d wanted her to get out safely...pack of dog-faced sea-lion people.**

“I’m glad you’re not dead.” Nico told him.

“Me too.” Percy grinned.

**The young telkhines were at the platform now...now was the time.**

“A hellhound would certainly do the trick.” Will said.

“I don’t remember Mrs O’Leary leaving Camp though.” Travis frowned.

“I don’t think she did.” Katie said.

“If she didn’t help, who did? Hera?” Connor wondered.

“You think Hera would have helped Percy? Fat chance.” Thalia scoffed.

“Lets just read and find out.” Poseidon cut in sternly. He wanted to get to the part where Percy was safe.

**But I hesitated. I didn’t trust Quintus’s gift.**

“I don’t blame you but it could save your life.” Jason said. “I’d use it.”

“It’s a good thing I didn’t.” Percy said. “It came in handy later.” 

**Before I could make up my mind...Let us see how long it takes him to burn!”**

Poseidon, Triton and Apollo all tensed up in worry.

**He scooped some lava out of the nearest...Two more splattered across my chest.**

“PERCY!” Poseidon cried out, reaching for his son. 

“Oh us.” Apollo muttered as he scanned Percy intently for any injuries. “Are you ok?” 

“I was healed.” Percy assured him.

**I dropped my sword in sheer terror...I remember screaming.**

“Oh gods.” Annabeth breathed, looking close to tears. 

“I’m going to destroy them.” Apollo vowed, his voice deathly calm. “Slowly and painfully.” 

“I’m alright guys. You know I survived.” Percy reminded them all as everyone was watching him like he was going to drop dead any second. 

“Yeah and we all want to know how.” Clarisse said. Percy had told them what happened but he had clearly left out a  _ lot _ of stuff. Even she was worried for him hearing about this.

Poseidon grabbed his son and sat him up and both Poseidon and Apollo could hug him tightly. 

**My whole body was on fire. The pain was worse than anything I’d ever felt.**

Apollo jumped up and began pacing up and down the length of the throne room out of agitation. He couldn’t help Percy, here he wasn’t injured, but hearing about this made him want to rip something, or someone, apart. Grover moved up to take Apollo’s vacated seat and grabbed Percy’s hand.

“Brother hurt.” Tyson sobbed.

“I survived and was healed in the end, Ty.” Percy gave him a smile.

“We should have been there to help.” Grover moaned.

  
“If you had been there, you would have been killed.” Percy said. “Only I could have survived what happened next.”

“That might not have happened had Tyson and I been there to help you and Annabeth.” Grover pointed out.

  
“Or it might have happened anyway.”

  
“What happened?” Triton asked.

  
“You’ll find out if you keep reading.” Percy said. Triton eyed the book like it was going to bite him. He didn’t want to keep hearing about how his brother was essentially being tortured.

**I was being consumed...demon children howling in delight.**

Apollo’s fist slammed into the wall.

“Dad?” Will asked in shock. Apollo gave no answer just cursed rapidly under his breath. He had forgotten he was mortal and that hitting a wall would hurt. 

Poseidon tightened his grip on Percy.

“Dad, can’t breathe.” Percy spluttered. The sea god’s grip loosened just a little and Percy took a deep, much needed, breath. Triton hurried on, wanting this done with.

**Then I remembered the voice of the river naiad...And I let it loose in one horrible scream.**

Poseidon stared at his son. To summon the sea without anything to channel it through was nearly impossible for his demigod children. Maybe in the situation Percy could summon enough to help him with the flames a little?

**Afterward, I could never describe what happened...blasting me downward into the lava.**

“NO!” Poseidon cried out. 

“Percy!” Triton yelled. 

“Still here.” Percy reminded them.

“Impossible.” Amphitrite breathed. “The lava should have killed you, even as a son of my husband.” 

Leo looked at Percy intently. He wasn’t just resistant to fire, he was pretty much immune to it if lava didn’t kill him. So he got to be waterproof and fireproof, along with all his other powers. Despite becoming more comfortable with Percy in recent days but now...he understood why everyone at Camp spoke of him like he was a legend. He was scarily powerful and Leo was very much glad he was on their side. 

**Fire and water collided...I was a comet hurtling toward the earth.**

“Did you just cause a volcano to erupt? And survive?” Zeus looked at his nephew in growing horror. No demigod should have that kind of power. The boy was too dangerous. He needed to be stopped.

“Er...yes.” Percy said sheepishly.

“Chapter’s done.” Triton announced before Zeus could start yelling.

“Let’s take a quick break.” Chiron said. The demigods hurried out of the room as quickly as possible, sensing an argument was going to take place. Percy and the gods were left, with all the gods staring at Percy in astonishment. Apollo rushed back to Percy’s side. 

“How are you ok?” He asked as he checked Percy over for injuries again.

“I guess I’m more fireproof than I originally thought.” Percy shrugged.

“None of my children should be able to survive being thrown into lava and then being in the middle of a volcanic eruption.” Poseidon frowned. He studied his son. Percy fidgeted under all the scrutiny. Maybe this meant that Percy was destined to be an immortal. But if he was this powerful as a demigod, he could not imagine how powerful Percy would be as a god. His son constantly grew more powerful and Poseidon wondered how long his mortal body would be able to contain his powers. If they got much stronger there would be some issues and Percy hadn’t finished growing yet. His powers would continue to grow until he turned eighteen. More things to worry about. 

“Exactly. The boy is too powerful.” Zeus said. “He cannot be allowed to live.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Apollo snapped. “Percy has done nothing but good.”

“So far. Things change.” Hera pointed out haughtily.

“I have vouched for my son. You will  _ not _ touch him.” Poseidon growled, glowering at his brother. “He is the prophecy child and he will need all of this power if he is to stop our father. Maybe his power is Fate’s way of making sure he can do what needs to be done.”

“No demigod should have this much power.” Ares said, scowling at Percy. “Never mind some prophecy.”

“Nobody will hurt Percy.” Apollo glared. He and Poseidon moved so they were standing in front of Percy. Triton and Amphitrite joined them.

“ _ You  _ want to protect the boy?” Hera sneered at Amphitrite.

“He deserves protection. I’m not like you, Hera, I don’t blame Percy for his father’s indiscretion. He did not ask to be born. From what I have seen in these books, he has a good heart and is loyal to Olympus. He may be a little rude,” She shot Percy an amused look. “But he will not betray us. He is too much like his father.”

“You make that sound like a bad thing, love.” Poseidon pretended to look hurt. She rolled her eyes.

“Well, now we’ve decided that nobody is hurting Percy, maybe we can all take that quick break and cool off.” Aphrodite suggested. Zeus grumbled and scowled. He knew that he couldn’t touch the boy at the moment. He would need to keep an eye out. If the boy showed any signs of betraying them not even his brother would be able to stop him from destroying him. He swept from the room with Hera right beside him. The other gods gave Percy one last wary look before leaving too. Soon, only Poseidon, Amphitrite, Apollo and Triton were left with Percy.

“Percy, you need some training. We need to train you to control your powers. You’ve never had anyone to teach you how to use them and given how strong they are it could be disastrous if you ever lost control again as you did in that volcano.” Poseidon told his son.

“Good idea.” Percy agreed. He never wanted to lose control of his powers. The idea terrified him.

“We won’t let you hurt anyone.” Apollo assured him, as if reading his mind. He pulled Percy into a hug, wrapping his arms tightly around the son of the sea god. Percy ducked his head and tucked in under Apollo’s chin, returning the hug equally tightly. 

“Apollo is correct. We will help you and we won’t let anyone get hurt.” Triton promised his brother. 

“Thanks guys.” Percy said, voice muffled by Apollo’s chest. Poseidon clapped his son on the shoulder. 

“We’ll start this evening.”

“We shall all help.” Amphitrite stated. Poseidon raised an eyebrow at his wife. “Percy losing control would be disastrous for us all. Not to mention, judging by your dear brother’s expression he is just waiting for Percy to slip up so he has an excuse to kill him. Percy doesn’t deserve that.” She explained. 

“Er...thank you.” Percy said. She gave him a small smile.

“You are welcome.”

Apollo pulled back from Percy slightly and then leaned down to kiss him firmly. Percy’s hand moved up to the back of Apollo’s neck and tangled in his blonde curls. There was a cough behind them and they jumped apart. Percy went bright red as his father looked at them with a raised eyebrow. 

“Thank you for choosing me.” Apollo told Percy who was gaping at him.

“I’m glad I did.” Percy grinned. “But remember I did choose you, even if my book self didn’t. So, as cute as your are when you’re jealous, you have no reason to be.”

“I might well have a reason at some point in the future. I can’t see your book self choosing me given that it’s unlikely we would ever have spent this much time getting to know each other if it weren’t for this reading.” Apollo pointed out.

“Well that will only be because I didn’t get a chance to know you. I’m certain that if I did I would make the same choice I did here.” Percy smiled. 

“Obviously. I’m awesome.” 

“Whatever.” 

“I am!”

“Maybe a little.” Percy allowed. Just then people started coming back into the room. Everyone took their old seats and Hades took the book from where Triton had left it.


	13. I Take a Permanent Vacation

“What?” Nico frowned.

“Well, it wasn’t actually permanent.” Percy shrugged.

“So we’re stuck thinking you’re dead and you’re off on vacation?” Clarisse growled.

“I was healing.” Percy protested. “I did almost die.”

“How hurt were you?” Poseidon asked immediately. “Where did you end up?” 

“Ehm...I was unconscious for a while and really weak for a while afterwards. I was on some island.” 

“Oh. Please tell me you didn’t end up there of all places?” Apollo groaned. “Not her island?”

“Er...I didn’t get an awful lot of choice.” Percy reminded him. 

**I woke up feeling like I was still on fire...Land of the Dead, and there was no blue sky.**

“I still hate how you know that.” Poseidon grumbled. 

**I tried to sit up. My muscles felt like they were melting...sinking into my skin, healing and repairing my brain.**

“You could feel that?” Silena asked interestedly.

  
“Yeah. It was definitely weird but I didn’t hurt anymore so I wasn’t going to complain.” Percy shrugged. Apollo made a note to sing to Percy at some point and show him exactly why  _ he _ was the god of music. 

**“Who?” I croaked...I am Calypso.”**

“I wonder how long you were gone?” Persephone mused. “Time moves differently on that island.”

“It was two weeks in the real world.” Beckendorf recalled.

“I have no idea how long it was on the island.” Percy frowned. “Longer than that though I think.” 

**The next time I woke I was in a cave...My mother could’ve named them all.**

“I’m impressed you knew that many.” Rachel laughed.

“Me too.” Percy grinned.

**There was a fireplace built into the cave wall...trying to ignore the throbbing pain in my head.**

Apollo and Poseidon eyed Percy in concern. He rolled his eyes at both of them but secretly he was enjoying being fussed over and worried about.

**I looked at my arms, sure that they would be...And that didn’t exactly reassure me.**

“It’s not that hard to put such magic on the whistle.” Aphrodite assured Percy. “Quintus probably realised that it was small enough you were likely to lose it on a quest.” Percy nodded. That did make sense, especially given how often they ended up losing their supplies on quests he had been on.

**With difficulty, I stood...twenty pounds I couldn’t afford to lose.**

Apollo’s anxiety racked up a notch. He made a mental note to make sure Percy ate a big lunch.

“I’m sure you put that back on with the amount you eat.” Clarisse scoffed. Percy grinned at her.

“I don’t put weight on easily, why do you think I eat so much? I need to eat that much with how much exercise I get.” He said. 

**My hair was a rat’s nest...and the sky was pure blue.**

“It sounds beautiful.” Katie said in awe.

“It was.” Percy agreed. “One of the most stunning places I’ve ever seen.”

**It seemed like a paradise, which immediately made me nervous.**

“Good.” Annbeth nodded.

“Although, honestly, even if the place was going to kill me I wasn’t in much shape to stop it.” Percy pointed out. 

“You’d have thought of something.” Grover assured him.

“Plus, I figured they wouldn’t go to the trouble of healing me only to kill me later.” Percy added.

“That is a good point.” Triton nodded.

**You deal with mythological stuff for a few years...but they appeared to be arguing.**

“She’s not going to inform Kronos about you is she?” Reyna asked.

“No. Calypso is good. She helped me.” Percy said. Zeus and a couple of the other gods scoffed at this. Percy glared.

**I tried to remember what I knew about Calypso...like a frog that had spent time in a microwave.**

“I do wonder about your descriptions.” Thalia laughed.

**“Oh…just a messenger,” she said...I honestly don’t know, Percy.”**

“That’s a bit worrying.” Connor said. 

“I think she meant time is difficult because it’s different from regular time. He might have been asleep for a couple of hours there but days in the regular world.” Silena explained.

“I’m pretty sure I was out for at least a couple of days there.” Percy said with a frown. 

“How do you know that?” Triton wondered.

“A guess based on instinct.” Percy shrugged. Most people were inclined to take his word for it given how good his instincts were.

“Yes, given how much power you used, a couple of days is the minimum amount of time for which you should have been unconcious.” Poseidon stated. He wouldn’t have been surprised if it was closer to a week except for how powerful Percy was. To use that much power for the first time and only be out for a couple of days was exceptional. Training him was going to be difficult. Percy already had a good grasp on his powers, the training he needs is to control his powers when he is emotional. To stop him having outbursts when he is angry or upset. It would take some consideration.

**“You know my name?”**

**“You talk in your sleep.”**

“I hate that.” Percy complained. 

**I blushed. “Yeah. I’ve been…ran her fingers through my mangled hair.**

Apollo grumbled under his breath making Percy chuckle quietly and elbow him lightly in the ribs. The sun god pouted at him.

**I stepped back nervously.**

That made Apollo grin happily.

**“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’ve just grown used...The water seemed to cushion your fall.**

“Lucky break, falling in the water.” Amphitrite said. “I’m sure it saved your life.” 

“Probably. It would also have started healing him immediately.” Poseidon nodded. He gripped his son tightly, hyper aware of just how close he had come to losing him.

**As to where you are, you are in Ogygia.”...because my geography is pretty terrible.**

“It’s not exactly near anywhere.” Hermes said.

“How can it not be near anywhere?” Octavian asked as if he found the statement ridiculous. Hermes narrowed his eyes at the Roman.

“It is too complicated for your little brain to understand.” He snapped. Octavian bristled but Reyna put her hand on his arm and gave him a warning glare.

**Calypso laughed...didn’t want to embarrass me.**

“Unlike all you lot who live to embarrass me.” Percy mock glared at Nico and then Thalia.

“You embarrass yourself just fine. We simply enjoy it.” Thalia smirked at him. He stuck his tongue out and she responded in kind.

**She was cute when she laughed...You can heal here in safety. Never fear.”**

“Makes a nice change.” Percy said.

“Yeah, I wish we could all find somewhere like that during a quest.” Beckendorf muttered.

“Not if you have to get lost for two weeks and have all your friends think you are dead.” Travis pointed out. Beckendorf nodded his agreement.

“Plus, I don’t think anyone wants to recreate what Percy did to arrive on that island.” Will said,

“I don’t think anyone else  _ could _ do that.” Nico muttered.

**“But my friends—”...and I didn’t back away this time.**

Apollo began grumbling again and Percy snickered.

**“Rest first. You are no good to your friends until you heal.”...you’re not an evil sorceress, are you?”**

“Took you long enough to ask.” Piper said.

“Well, even if she was, she probably wouldn’t tell him.” Jason pointed out. 

**She smiled coyly. “Why would you think that?”...Except she liked to turn men into guinea pigs.”**

“Just a small detail.” Silena laughed.

“Seems like a pretty big detail to me.” Beckendorf said.

**Calypso gave me that laugh again. “I promise I will not turn you into a guinea pig.”**

“That leaves a lot of things for her to turn you into.” Rachel pointed out.

“I did think of that.” Percy assured her.

“Wow.” She put on an exaggerated shocked face.

“Oh shut up.” He said but he grinned at her.

**“Or anything else?”...Your eyes are already closing.”**

“She didn’t actually promise not to turn you into anything else.” Travis pointed out.

“I was too tired to argue.” Percy shrugged.

“You were only up for a short while.” Apollo frowned in concern. He knew it was normal to be that tired after using so much power but it didn’t stop him from worrying.

**She was right. My knees buckled...I was just really weak and thin.**

“Based on your description earlier, I’m going with you being weak and thin.” Grover said. He was trying for a teasing tone but it just came out really worried.

“Immortals are often stronger than they look.” Hermes said. 

**She walked me back to a cushioned bench...Capricorn, Pegasus, Sagittarius.**

“I’m glad you paid attention.” Annabeth gave him a small, strained smile but he appreciated the attempt.

“I always listen...I just often forget again.” He grinned. She rolled her eyes.

**And there, near the southern horizon...friend of ours who had died last winter.**

Artemis smiled sadly.

**“Percy, what do you see?”...Calypso was twice as brilliant.**

Apollo glared at the floor.

“Good job you don’t have your powers. I don’t think Zeus would appreciate you glaring a hole in the floor.” Percy told him quietly. He reached out and took Apollo’s hand. 

“I know it’s stupid but I don’t like reading about how pretty you find her when I know the only way to get off the island is when she falls in love with you.” 

“Obviously I didn’t stay. Besides, don’t worry, you’re the fairest maiden of them all.” Percy teased. Apollo glared at him, though the corner of his mouth was twitching like he was fighting back a smile.

“You’re the only princess round here.” Apollo stated.

**I mean, I’ve seen the goddess of love herself...Calypso was a lot more beautiful,**

All of the demigods froze. Piper, Drew, Gwen and Silena all inhaled sharply. 

“EXCUSE ME?” Aphrodite screeched. “HER? YOU THINK  _ SHE _ IS MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN ME?”

“Er…” Percy grimaced. “It’s a different kind of beauty.” He tried nervously. While he was glad she did not have her godly powers right now, he figured he was going to have an issue once they did come back.

“Really, Percy?” Grover muttered.

“Hey, it even said I knew not to say it out loud. I didn’t plan on her hearing my thoughts.” Percy protested.

“Of course you’re the most beautiful woman in the universe, sweetheart.” Ares assured the love goddess, scowling furiously at Percy. “The boy doesn’t know what he’s talking about.” Aphrodite’s expression cleared slightly as she turned her gaze on her boyfriend. 

“Naturally.” She agreed. 

“Nobody could ever hope to match you.” Ares said and he continued muttering to her in a similar vein. He had centuries of practise at calming down Aphrodite and it showed as she soon looked like likely to vapourise someone. Hades decided to continue reading quickly.

**because she just seemed so natural...“Uh…I forgot.”**

“Smooth, Percy.” Thalia rolled her eyes.

“Hey, I probably had a concussion.” He defended. 

“That’s probably been healed by then.” Will said with a grin.

“No, no. I’m sure that’s what it was.” Percy glared at Will.

**She laughed gently. “Well, as long as you’re up...“What does it do?”**

“It doesn’t have to do anything.” Persephone frowned. “It is a plant and it gives beauty.”

**“Do?” Calypso mused. “It doesn’t really do anything...grapes that would’ve made Dionysus sit up and beg.**

Dionysus scoffed. “It’s not as if I could have them anyway.” He muttered bitterly.

“It sounds lovely.” Katie smiled dreamily. “Maybe you could help us recreate something similar at Camp?” She asked Percy.

“Er...sure. I can try.” He agreed. “I’m no good at gardening though.”

“We can take care of that part.” Katie smiled.

“And with father off his restrictions we can grow grape vines instead of just strawberries.” Pollux grinned. He had been delighted when he got the news that Zeus had been persuaded to lift the restriction on his dad. He had never thought that was fair. Dionysus smiled at his son.

“I’m sure you will do a wonderful job.” He told Pollux who looked thrilled and then sad as he realised Castor wouldn’t be there to help them. 

**“Back home,” I said...don’t know what I’m talking about, do you?”**

“She’s lived on that island for centuries.” Aphrodite said with a scowl, still angry with Percy’s observation. “She won’t have kept up with mortal developments.”

“That’s pretty sad. Why can’t she leave?” Leo frowned.

“She sided with the Titans in the last fight.” Hephaestus told his son.

“So does that mean all those who side with Kronos this time are going to be banished in the same way?” Leo wanted to know. 

“No. They shall suffer a much worse fate.” Zeus growled. Percy rolled his eyes. He just hoped the books would give him something to argue with soon. He wanted to show Zeus he was wrong to punish them. 

**“I fear not. I haven’t left Ogygia in…a long time.”...“I? Nothing.**

“Nonsense. You sided with Atlas.” Zeus scowled.

“Did she actually fight though? I mean, Calypso doesn’t exactly strike me as the fighting type.” Percy asked.

“It was enough that she supported him.” Hera snapped.

**But I’m afraid my father did a great deal...She was one of the bravest people I’ve ever met.”**

Artemis smiled slightly. “Yes, but Zoe was one of my Hunters. She swore loyalty to me and therefore to Olympus.”

**Calypso studied me for a long time...I was already getting dizzy from standing up so long.**

“So no. Not healed yet.” Apollo said huffily. “You should go for a swim or something. Speed up the healing process.”

“The sea can only do so much.” Poseidon told him kindly. 

“I wish I had thought of that though. It might not have healed me immediately but it would have made it a bit quicker.” Percy sighed. 

**“You want me to go?”...Grover several times, but I couldn’t make contact.**

“You wouldn’t be able to because of where Ogygia is.” Hermes said. 

**I hated not knowing if they were all right.**

“We were totally fine. It was you we were worried about.” Grover said.

“I know that now.” Percy shrugged. “But I had no way of knowing if Annabeth had made it out before the volcano blew up.”

**On the other hand, I really was weak...drained me like nothing else I’d ever expected.**

“I should hope so.” Poseidon muttered. “Maybe that’ll make you think twice before erupting a volcano and giving your father a heart attack.”

“Gods can’t get heart attacks.” Percy grinned.

“You seem to be trying your hardest to disprove that theory.” Triton smirked. 

“Besides, I didn’t plan on what happened...it just did.”

  
“And that’s disturbing by itself.” Zeus muttered. Hera nodded her agreement.

**I didn’t feel like a prisoner or anything...fell in her face whenever she knelt to dig in the garden.**

Apollo sighed. This chapter had better be over soon or he was going to go mad. Between Percy being injured and Calypso being around...it wasn’t his favourite chapter to hear about.

**Sometimes she would hold out her...I didn’t understand what was bothering her.**

“The fact that you need to go and she can’t leave.” Hermes sighed. He had always felt bad for Calypso which was why he visited when he could just to give her some company.

“Yeah. She doesn’t deserve her punishment.” Percy said. Zeus turned to glare at him.

“Of course she does.”

“No. Besides, it’s not just staying there, it’s the other part of her punishment that’s even crueller.” He pointed out. Aphrodite smirked.

**One night we were eating dinner together...“How? Tell me. I want to help.”**

“Always so thoughtful.” Apollo muttered, trying to focus on how kind Percy was rather than his boyfriend sharing a romantic dinner with Calypso. In the back of his mind he started planning his own dinner to have with Percy. It would totally make him forget about that random picnic.

“I don’t like people being punished when they didn’t do anything wrong. Or even if they did, being punished really excessively.” Percy shrugged.

“You are a good man, Percy Jackson.” Artemis smiled at him. She was pleased for him and her brother. While Apollo had not said anything to her yet, their interactions this morning told her something favourable had happened between them. It appeared her brother may actually have chosen wisely for a change. Artemis just hoped it ended better than his other attempts at love. He deserved to be happy.

**“Don’t say that. Please don’t say that.”...Or anywhere else. I am alone here.”**

“She’s lucky she got a nice island to live on.” Hera said haughtily. 

**“Because your father was Atlas.”...prisons are not nearly as nice as mine.”**

“Exactly.” Demeter nodded. Hades noted that she glanced in his direction when she said that and he had to refrain from rolling his eyes. She would never understand that Persephone was not his prisoner.

**“But that’s not fair,” I said...“Are they? All of them? All the time?”**

“Yes.” Zeus said firmly.

“Really?” Apollo glared. “My mother is a titaness and you didn’t seem to have an issue with that.” 

“Not to mention, our mother is not evil.” Poseidon pointed out fairly. 

“Alright, maybe not all of them but those who supported father deserve to be punished.” Zeus growled.

“And they have been but don’t you think an eternity is a bit too long to punish someone for one mistake?” Percy argued. “Why do you think so many of the minor gods and goddesses have supported Kronos in the upcoming war? Because you treat them unfairly.”

“I am the king!” Zeus thundered.

“Even a king can be wrong.” Poseidon told his brother. Zeus glared at him but Poseidon was so used to this that it didn’t bother him in the slightest. 

“Let us continue reading.” Hestia cut in.

**She pursed her lips. “Tell me, Percy...or because they are your family?”**

“Of course we are good.” Hera scoffed.

“Oh yes. Not like you voted whether to kill your own children or anything. Or try to kill each other’s children simply for existing.” Thalia rolled her eyes. “You screw over demigods all the time and still expect them to be loyal. It’s not a case of you being the good guys, it’s just the other guys are worse.” Zeus frowned at Thalia. His own daughter did not consider him a ‘good guy’? He did not know what to say to that. He wanted to call a godly council but knew there was no point making decisions until they had finished all of the books.

**I didn’t answer. She had a point...I supported them because Poseidon was my dad.**

Poseidon gave his son a smile. He might not have been the best father but at least he had been good enough to earn his son’s loyalty.

**“Perhaps I was wrong in the war,” Calypso said..anyone else live here with you? it’s a nice place.”**

“If she had any Titan friends they may plan to overthrow us.” Zeus stated.

**A tear trickled down her cheek. “I…I promised myself I wouldn’t speak of this. But—”**

“Well don’t speak of it then.” Apollo snapped under his breath, making sure Percy didn’t hear him. 

**She was interrupted by a rumbling...Calypso said. “This is a rare honor.”**

“Why is dad there?” Beckendorf frowned.

“To tell me something.” Percy sighed. He really hoped the book skipped over the part where he considered staying forever but his luck didn’t generally go in his favour when it came to such things.

**The fire god grunted. “Calypso. Beautiful as always.**

Aphrodite glared at her husband angrily. Hephaestus rolled his eyes.

“Do not worry. She is nowhere near your beauty, my dear.” He assured her.

**Would you excuse us, please, my dear?...sprayed soda all over the gods work clothes.**

Hephaestus grunted in annoyance.

**Hephaestus roared and spat a few curses...They never act up!”**

“Yes they do.” Nico scowled.

“Isn’t that why you have a junkyard? For all the projects that act up or went wrong?” Leo pointed out. Hephaestus grunted but made no reply.

**“Hephaestus,” I said, “what’s going on?...I started telling everyone where you were.”**

“You let us think he was dead!” Annabeth cried.

“It would have been worse if he told you he thought Percy was alive only to find that he wasn’t.” Chiron told her gently. 

“Or that he had chosen to stay on the island.” Apollo grimaced. 

“Percy would never have chosen that.” Poseidon said. He knew his friends meant too much to his son. Percy sighed but didn’t correct his dad just yet.

**“What do you mean?” I said. “Of course I’m coming back!”**

“We didn’t doubt you.” Triton smiled at his brother.

**Hephaestus studied me skeptically...evacuation of almost half a million people as a precaution.**

Percy went red and buried his face in his dad’s chest. He still couldn’t believe he had caused all of that damage. He had ruined lives.

**Meanwhile, ash has fallen as far away...“You caused quite an explosion.”**

Everyone froze, gaping at Percy who was doing his best to look as small as possible. 

“You did all of that? On your own?” Reyna asked in astonishment.

“It sounded scary enough in that last chapter but this...woah, Percy.” Jason looked awed by what had happened. “Just how powerful are you?”

“That is what I would like to know.” Zeus stated grimly. “If he gets any more powerful we will need to contain him.” Percy swallowed. He didn’t know what containing him would consist of but it didn’t sound good.

“Or we turn him.” Hermes suggested.

“What?” Percy asked.

“You’re too powerful to be a demigod. Either we need to restrict your powers or make you a god.” Demeter explained.

“Now hang on…” Percy began.

“We are going to do neither!” Poseidon roared over everyone. The room went silent as he continued. “At least, not yet. Not that we could even if we wanted to, we currently have no power. But we are not restricting my son’s powers when he will need all of them to fight Kronos. Nor will we turn him into a god without his permission.”

“You’ve heard the damage he could cause. If he grows any stronger it might not be Kronos we need to worry about.” Ares stated, eyeing Percy maliciously. 

“Hey!” Percy protested. “I wouldn’t turn on you guys.” 

“Besides, given his power do you really want to imagine what will happen if you turn him into a god against his will?” Apollo asked quietly. While he wanted Percy to become immortal he would never dream of forcing it on him against his will. Plus, he suspected that doing so would not turn out well for the gods. Doing such a thing would likely be the thing that turned Percy against them and with godly powers? They would be in trouble.

“Seeing the news is nothing compared to hearing about it like this.” Travis muttered.

“Percy’s powers are so cool.” Connor whispered back.

“Glad he’s on our side though.” Chris said.

“I take it that it’s not common to be that powerful even for the big three kids?” Leo asked Beckendorf.

“No. It’s definitely not common from what I know. Thalia certainly isn’t that powerful. I’m not sure about Nico.” Beckendorf told him.

“The discussion is over. We will see what the rest of these books tell us and then we will decide what needs to be done.” Poseidon cut in over what Zeus was going to say. The lord of the sky glowered but allowed Hades to continue reading.

**I stared at the blank bronze screen...they’ll be using my forge any time soon.**

“I don’t think anybody will be using it anytime soon.” Beckendorf muttered.

“I wonder how much forge is actually left?” Leo mused. 

“No idea.” Beckendorf shrugged.

**On the other hand, neither will I...We’ll have to wait and see—”**

“Do not tell me the boy released Typhon?” Zeus asked in disbelief.

“Not exactly.” Percy muttered.

“What does that mean?” Hades wanted to know.

“Percy didn’t actually release him, or wake him up but now it’s pretty much only a matter of time.” Chiron said heavily.

**“I couldn’t release him, could I?...horrible monster ever imprisoned by the gods.**

“I think it’s safe to say you really  _ are _ that powerful.” Piper muttered. Hearing about all of this made her slightly nervous about travelling all the way to Rome with Percy on the same ship. Obviously his power would be helpful but if he lost control...he could easily sink Leo’s ship he planned on building.

“I’m glad you didn’t vapourize yourself.” Rachel told him.

“Yeah. Me too.” Percy nodded, face still buried in Poseidon’s chest.

**Maybe I was too dangerous. Maybe it was safer for my friends to think I was dead.**

“No. Don’t think like that.” Thalia said firmly while Zeus, Hera, Ares and Athena all nodded. 

“Even the boy recognises this.” Athena stated. 

“Mother!” Annabeth cried. “Percy is on our side. We need him.” 

“We shall see.” The wisdom goddess said sternly.

**“What about Grover and Tyson?” I asked...I suppose the labyrinth has them.”**

“Were you ok?” Reyna asked Grover.

“Yes. Mostly. It wasn’t fun but we were alive.” He shrugged.

**“So what am I supposed to do?”...you thinking up is down and right is wrong.”**

“You flatter me.” Aphrodite laughed.

**I thought about my meeting with Aphrodite...romance department, just because she liked me.**

“Funny way of showing someone you like them, making their life unnecessarily difficult.” Percy muttered. 

**“Is this part of her plan?” I asked. “Did she land me here?”**

“You better not have done. He has a quest to get back to.” Apollo growled.

“He needed somewhere to heal.” Aphrodite giggled. She was unsure whether she had or not but it did seem like something she would do. Percy needed to be tested, especially after Annabeth had kissed him. 

**“Possibly. Hard to say with her...I think you know how to navigate the maze.”**

“At last...a straight answer.” Percy sighed.

“Aren’t you glad you met me before.” Rachel laughed. 

“I suppose you had to come in handy for something.” He smirked.

**It finally sank in. why hadn’t I seen it before?...But the words stuck in my throat.**

“What?” Poseidon looked at his son in surprise. All of the Greek campers were also taken aback. None of them thought that Percy might have stayed.

“You were considering staying?” Apollo asked jealously. 

“Yeah. Not only was the place amazing and peaceful, something I hadn’t exactly had a lot of recently, but I was worried about my powers. I thought it would be safer if I stayed there.” Percy explained. Both gods nodded. Considering everything they had read, neither of them could blame Percy for wanting to enjoy some peace and quiet. 

“What made you change your mind?” Triton asked.

“I didn’t change it exactly, I never actually decided to stay but I knew I couldn’t leave my friends. I finally had the answer to the maze and Camp still needed saving. Not to mention I think mom would have found a way to Ogygia just to kill me herself if I didn’t let her know I was alive.”

“Very true.” Thalia laughed.

**I found myself looking out at the lake...And when you break a person, he can’t be fixed.”**

“That’s no excuse for murder.” Athena snapped.

“I didn’t say it was, my dear. I simply said I understand.” Hephaestus corrected gently.

**Hephaestus brushed the last drops of Pepsi...forge and worked with his hammer, eh?”**

“That is fair advice for a man who told him not to ever ask a cripple for advice.” Dionysus gave a small chuckle. Hephaestus grunted and shrugged.

**“I’ll—I’ll try.”...I’ll always remember you for that.”**

“Just don’t do it again, eh?” Hephaestus gave a lopsided smile. “Or your father might just kili me for getting you into such a mess.”

“I’d certainly consider it.” Poseidon muttered.

**It sounded very final, that good-bye...“He has ordered you to return,” Calypso guessed.**

“I would not presume to order him about.” Hephaestus frowned. 

“You can’t order anyone to leave Ogygia anyway. It has to be a choice.” Hermes said.

**“Well, not ordered...“For you to stay.”**

“Not good at keeping promises, are you?” Apollo growled. 

“If she didn’t offer, then this wouldn’t be a test.” Aphrodite laughed happily. 

“A test?” Percy frowned.

  
“Indeed.” She grinned mischievously at Percy.

**“Stay,” I said. “Like…forever?”...You could escape your prophecy.”**

“Now that would be tempting.” Thalia said.

“Yeah. Thanks for not staying Percy.” Nico gave him a grateful smile. “Much appreciated.” 

**I stared at her, stunned. “Just like that?”...I can’t help falling in love with.”**

Apollo growled lowly. 

“That is pretty cruel.” Piper frowned. “Sending her people she will fall in love with but making sure they can’t stay.” 

“Nobody deserves to not only be alone but constantly get their heart broken.” Silena agreed.

**The night was quiet except for the gurgle...long time to realize what she was saying.**

“Of course it did.” Rachel rolled her eyes.

“She actually pretty much spelt it out for you and you didn’t get it. Even said it to your face.” Thalia snickered. Apollo was suddenly glad he went for the direct route. It appeared that any ounce of subtlety was completely lost on Percy. 

**“Me?” I asked.**

“Of course you.” Rachel scoffed.

“There isn’t anyone else on the island.” Reyna pointed out.

**“If you could see your face.”...knowing that you would break my heart.”**

Percy looked down guiltily. He had felt completely horrible about that but he hadn’t had a choice. Not a real one anyway. If anything it just made him even more angry at the gods. Their punishments were too cruel.

**“But…I’m just…I mean, I’m just me.”**

“Remember what I told you?” Apollo said, looking at Percy intently.

“Yeah.” Percy gave him a smile. “I do.” 

**“That is enough,” Calypso promised...I’m afraid that is the only way you could help me.”**

“I will find a way.” Percy promised himself. He may not love Calypso but she deserved better and he would find a way to make that happen.

**I stared at the horizon. The first red streaks...No war. No prophecy. No more taking sides.**

“I can’t believe you turned that down.” Frank muttered.

“He made the right choice.” Jason stated. No matter how tempting it sounded, he couldn’t even conceive of deciding to stay. He knew his duty and it was a good sign for Percy that he did too. He would need that to survive at the Roman camp.

“Percy’s special.” Nico smiled. 

“It would certainly seem so.” Hazel agreed.

**“I can’t,” I told her...Calypso tucked the flower into my T-shirt pocket.**

“What did you do with that?” Katie asked with interest.

“Planted it at home.” Percy smiled.

**She stood on her tiptoes and kissed me on the forehead, like a blessing.**

Apollo growled to himself once more and Percy gave him a gentle shoulder nudge. 

“You’re too popular for your own good.” Apollo complained.

“And you’re still the one I chose.” Percy reminded him.

“Don’t you forget it.”

“Somehow I don’t think you’ll let me.”

“Damn right.” Apollo smirked. “You’re mine now.” 

**“Then come to the beach, my hero...“Maybe I can visit you,” I said.**

“You only end up on Ogygia once.” Hephaestus grunted.

“I like doing impossible things.” Percy grinned.

“There is that.” Triton nodded. His brother had done enough things that should have been impossible already.

**She shook her head. “No man ever finds Ogygia...“Plant a garden in Manhattan for me, will you?”**

“I planted the moonlace but I could use some help to get a better garden going. Even if there isn’t much room. Maybe you could give me a hand in exchange for helping with the Camp gardens?” He asked Katie.

“Of course.” She smiled. She would always encourage people who wanted to grow plants. Apollo looked quite disgruntled by this idea but knew it would do no good to argue.

**“I promise.” I stepped onto the raft...She would always be my biggest what if.**

“Really?” Apollo frowned.

“No. I don’t think so. I don’t regret not staying and I know exactly how my life would have played out had I stayed. It would have been wonderful but I would never have been able to forgive myself if I had stayed and then Kronos won.” Percy said. The sun god nodded.

**Within minutes the island of Ogygia...“Camp Half-Blood,” I said. “Sail me home.”**

“The chapter is done.” Hades announced.

“Thank us for that.” Apollo muttered.

“I will read.” Persephone said, taking the book from her husband.

“After the next chapter we shall have an early lunch.” Chiron stated. “And we may need to have a late night. I think it would be best if we finished this book today.” He knew what was coming at the end and he figured both campers and gods would need a night to recover from the loss that was about to happen.


	14. We Hire a New Guide

“Oh good. I’m back.” Rachel grinned.

“You are actually going to rely on a mortal?” Athena sneered. “This is my daughter’s quest.”

“And she needed help. Wisdom is also knowing your own weaknesses and when to ask for help.” Chiron pointed out. Athena scowled.

“It’s pretty brave of you to go into the Labyrinth.” Reyna looked at Rachel with even more admiration.

“I was excited to learn more about their world.” Rachel smiled. “And to help Percy.”

**Hours later, my raft washed up at Camp Half-Blood...great white sharks surfaced and steered me toward the beach.**

“As you do.” Connor muttered. “How close to the shore are the sharks?”

“Not very, they only come close if I ask them to.” Percy shrugged.

“Do you often go and play with sharks?” Chris asked.

“Sometimes.” 

**When I landed...Cabins: all vacant.**

“There wasn’t an attack or something?” Hermes asked anxiously.

“No. Let’s just say Percy has some interesting timing.” Clarisse said with a wry smile.

**Then I noticed smoke rising from the amphitheater...best surviving friend to do the final honors.”**

“You arrived just in time for your own funeral?” Triton let out a light chuckle.

“At least they didn’t let the Ares cabin make my shroud this time.” Percy grinned.

“Only you could say you’ve had two burial shrouds and not needed either of them.” Beckendorf laughed.

“Honestly, I think it’s impressive that I’ve only had two given all the times I could have died.” Percy grinned.

“That’s not funny.” Poseidon and Apollo said at the same time.

**I came up on the back of the amphitheater...They were burning my shroud.**

“It was nicer than the last one.” Annabeth smiled.

“That wasn’t difficult.” Silena laughed.

**Annabeth turned to face the audience...I heard a few curses from the Ares cabin,**

“What?” Apollo growled. “They were actually disappointed you were alive?”

“Were you one of them?” Poseidon glared at Clarisse.

“No!” She protested. “I was glad to see him alive.” She looked slightly ashamed at her cabin mate’s actions.

“But your cabin mates actually hoped he was dead.” Triton scowled. “What kind of a Camp is this where people are disappointed when someone turns up alive?” 

Chiron looked disappointed and slightly sad. He had hoped the war would bring them above such petty differences.

**but Clarisse just rolled her eyes...hugged me so fiercely she nearly cracked my ribs.**

“Cracked ribs are the least you deserved for making us all worry.” Annabeth glared at him.

“Because I had so much choice.” Percy rolled his eyes.

**The other campers fell silent...“I’m sorry,” I said. “I got lost.”**

“Well that’s one way of putting it.” Reyna laughed.

“Really, really lost.” Piper said.

**“LOST?” she yelled. “Two weeks, Percy?...back to your normal activities!”**

“Thank us for Chiron.” Apollo said.

**Without waiting for us to protest...A magic raft had carried me back to camp.**

“All technically true.” Connor grinned.

“Now you’re getting how to tell proper half truths.” Travis said approvingly.

**All that was true, but as I said it my palms...Annabeth’s jaw dropped. “Percy, that’s crazy!”**

“So are most of the things Percy does but they usually work.” Pollux said. 

**Chiron sat back in his wheelchair and...Annabeth said. “I need to lead it.”**

“Having help doesn’t mean it isn’t your quest.” Reyna pointed out. 

“No but she would be essentially taking over the quest.” Annabeth muttered.

**Chiron looked uncomfortable...It’s cowardly. It’s—”**

“How is it cowardly to accept help?” Chris frowned.

“It’s not. My pride was talking because I didn’t want to accept help from a mortal.” Annabeth sighed. 

**“Hard to admit we need a mortal’s help,”...And she stormed out of the room.**

“It’s not his fault.” Thalia said gently.

“Yeah. I know.” Annabeth grimaced. “Sorry, Percy.”

“Don’t worry. I get it.” He waved her off.

**I stared at the doorway...Chiron promised. “She’s jealous, my boy.”**

“Thanks, Chiron.” Annabeth glared. The Centaur chuckled. 

“I meant you were jealous that a mortal could see through the maze while you could not.” He explained.

“Oh.” Annabeth went a little red. 

**“That’s stupid. She’s not…it’s not like…”...I think she suspects where you were marooned.”**

“There aren’t many places you can get marooned on an island where a magical raft will come to save you.” Silena said.

**I met his eyes, and I knew Chiron had...She is…understandably distraught.”**

“Oh yeah. Poor Sally.” Thalia whistled.

**My heart skipped a beat...What was wrong with me that I hadn’t even considered that?**

“You had a lot on your mind.” Grover said.

“Well, I managed to worry about all my friends but not my mom.” Percy frowned.

“There wasn’t anything you could have done anyway.” Rachel consoled him. “It’s not like you could have sent a message to her.” 

**“Chiron,” I said, “what about Grover and Tyson?...he comes back alive, they will force him into a shameful exile.”**

“That’s so wrong.” Katie frowned. “Grover didn’t do anything wrong.” 

“Yeah. Whether he found Pan or not he shouldn’t be sent into a shameful exile.” Reyna agreed.

“Thanks guys.” Grover smiled gratefully.

**He sighed. “Grover and Tyson are very...“I shouldn’t have let them run off.”**

“Yes you should.” Silena said.

“Grover needed to go.” Dionysus stated.

**“Grover has his own destiny...“Actually two unpleasant things.”**

“Lovely.” Jason grimaced.

“It could have been worse. Two pieces of bad news for two weeks isn’t bad for the rate at which the war was escalating.” Clarisse muttered grimly. She knew exactly what one of those pieces of news was and had no desire to hear it.

**“Great.”...He’s in the infirmary now, too weak to move.**

“Chris.” Hermes whispered. 

  
“I’m alive. I made it through thanks to Mr D.” Chris assured him. Hermes hugged his son tightly. 

**I had to order Clarisse back to her regular schedule, because she was at his bedside constantly.**

“Thank you.” Hermes said to Clarisse who was hugging Chris from his other side.

“C..can’t b..breathe you guys.” Chris spluttered.

“Sorry.” They said in unison, each partially releasing him.

**He doesn’t respond to anything...He has simply lost the will to live.”**

Hermes inhaled sharply. Once again he felt like something was twisting in his gut and trying to rip his heart out at the same time. How had he failed so badly? 

“Chris, I…” Hermes had no idea what to say.

“It was a bad time, yes. I’m fine now. Not crazy. Plenty to live for.” Chris tried to keep his voice light. He hated being the centre of so much attention. Especially when the attention was for being insane.

“I’m sorry I…” Hermes trailed off again. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you.”

“I already forgave you.” Chris told him. 

**I shuddered. Despite all the run-ins I’d had with Clarisse...I’d never have made it out.**

Annabeth, Grover and Tyson all smiled at him.

“We wouldn’t have made it without you either.” Grover told him.

**“I’m sorry to say,” Chiron continued, “the other news is less pleasant still.**

“Less pleasant than my son losing the will to live?” Hermes growled.

“It was an issue of Camp safety.” Chiron said, looking apologetic.

**Quintus has disappeared.”...“It can’t be a coincidence.”**

“Just great. More traitors.” Piper sighed.

“At least he can’t actually lead them to Camp.” Jason said.

“No but he can give them information.” Piper pointed out.

**Chiron sighed heavily. “So many betrayals...“The hellhound is still in the arena.**

“He didn’t take his pet with him?” Piper frowned.

“Well he did give Percy a way to summon her. Maybe he was kind of giving her to him as well.” Thalia suggested.

**It won’t let anyone approach...waiting for heroes that never came back.**

“Far too many.” Chiron sighed sadly.

**Before dinner I stopped by the sword arena...bowled me over and started licking my face.**

“Yeah, she wouldn’t do that to anyone else.” Beckendorf said. “The best I could do was feed her from a distance.” 

**Now usually, being the son of Poseidon and all...because I got a pretty good bath.**

“Dog saliva isn’t sea water.” Poseidon laughed.

“Yeah. Shame that.” Percy grimaced.

**“Whoa, girl!” I yelled. “Can’t breathe. Lemme up!”...it was that he really cared for his megadog.**

“You’d also think that a hellhound would be useful for getting through the Labyrinth.” Leo said. “Certainly couldn’t hurt.” 

**I was thinking about that and toweling...“Dog tried to chew me up.”**

“Smart dog.” Will muttered.

“Shut up.” Clarisse rolled her eyes

**“She’s an intelligent dog,” I said.**

Will and Percy grinned at each other.

**“Funny.”...They…they die, and the monsters just keep coming back.”**

Chris hugged Clarisse tightly. 

“It’s not fair.” She growled quietly.

“I know but I’m ok now.” He whispered back. “I’m right here and I don’t plan on going anywhere.” She nodded but still looked both a little scared and angry.

**She picked up a javelin...dummy straight between the eyeholes of its helmet.**

“Good shot.” Ares nodded approvingly. He knew his daughter was struggling and emotional comfort was not his strong suit. But fighting practise he knew about.

“Thanks.” Clarisse gave him a tiny smile in return.

**She had called Chris a hero, like he had never gone over to the Titan’s side.**

“Percy.” Clarisse growled.

“Sorry. I didn’t exactly know Chris then.” Percy shot the son of Hermes an apologetic look. Chris waved it away. He didn’t think he had been a hero back then either. Percy was right he had joined the Titan side and before that he had done nothing of note. Chris did hope he could be considered a hero now but not back then.

“I get it.” He told Percy.

“Chris.” Clarisse frowned,

“It’s ok. Percy does have a point.” Chris told her quietly. “I  _ did _ join Kronos.” She scowled but said nothing further.

**It reminded me of the way Annabeth sometimes talked about Luke. I decided not to bring that up.**

“Wise choice.” Grover muttered to his friend while Annabeth went red.

**“Chris was brave,” I said. “I hope he gets better.”**

Chris shot Percy a smile.

**She glared at me as if I were her next target...Don’t ask him for help. Just kill him.”**

“Don’t they need his help?” Reyna frowned. 

“Well, if he’s dead he can’t help Luke either.” Frank shrugged. 

**“Clarisse—”...That person is evil. Plain evil.”**

“It wasn’t the Labyrinth that did that to Chris.” Connor pointed out. ”It was Minos.”

“She still has a point.” Travis said, looking as if he had swallowed a lemon with those words.

**For a second she reminded me of Eurytion...Calypso’s Island, dreams found me.**

“You didn’t dream on the island?” Poseidon frowned.

“Not really. It was awesome.” Percy grinned.

“No demigod dreams. That does sound nice.” Beckendorf said.

**I was in a king’s courtroom—a big white chamber...Minos, the royal creep himself,**

Most of the room sniggered at Percy’s description.

**swept into the room. He was so tall and serious...It had to be worth like a gazillion dollars.**

Connor and Travis both whistled appreciatively.

**Cocalus whistled appreciatively...coaxed it through the shell by putting honey at the far end.”**

“That is pretty smart.” Thalia said.

“Yeah. I think only Daedalus would have thought of that solution.” Annabeth smiled slightly.

**“Ingenious man,” Minos said...You are harboring Daedalus.”**

“Daedalus must have known it was a trap when he solved the puzzle.” Silena frowned.

“Probably but he most likely couldn’t resist. He  _ is _ a child of Athena.” Connor pointed out with a teasing smile in Annabeth’s direction.

“What is that supposed to mean?” She glared at him.

“That you can’t resist showing off.” He smirked.

**Cocalus shifted uncomfortably on his throne...He should’ve summoned his army or something.**

“Crete was a  _ very _ powerful kingdom back then.” Annabeth told him. Percy just frowned but didn’t bother questioning further.

**Minos only had two guards...not love those who harbor criminals, either.”**

“They look down on breaking hospitality more.” Hermes stated grimly. “Hospitality is sacred.”

**Cocalus nodded. “Very well...I would be honored to draw the bath myself.”**

“She changed her tune.” Hazel said, eyebrow raised.

“I’m guessing she has something planned.” Frank muttered.

**She smiled prettily at Minos...the water was covered with multicolored foam.**

“Ancient Greek Mr bubble?” Leo grinned. 

“Something like that.” Percy shrugged but he was grinning too.

**The girls turned aside as Minos...flattery pretty thick, but the old guy was eating it up.**

“Yeah. There was no such thing as too much flattery to the ancient kings.” Apollo chuckled.

“I hear gods are the same.” Percy muttered to him. 

“You can flatter me all you like.” The sun god grinned.

“You wish.” 

“Yeah but I know you better than that.” Apollo snorted. Now Percy was the one grinning.

**Aelia’s sisters trickled scented oil...but he couldn’t resist solving it.”**

“Sounds about right.” Will snorted.

**Minos frowned. “Daedalus spoke to you about me?”...Do not listen to him.”**

“Bit late for that I think.” Nico scowled.

“Their dad already said they love him.” Hazel agreed.

**“He is a genius,” Aelia said...Perhaps your daughter felt the same way.”**

All the females in the room, except Clarisse, smiled at that.

**Minos tried to sit up, but Aelia’s...I hated Minos, it was pretty horrible to watch.**

Poseidon sighed as he gave his son a sideways hug. Percy had seen far too much for someone so young. And he would likely see much worse before the end of the war. It pained the sea god that he couldn’t prevent this.

**He thrashed and cried out...justice in the Underworld, my soul will haunt him for eternity!”**

“Not anymore.” Hades grinned evilly. He was looking forward to making Minos pay.

**“Brave words, Your Majesty,” Aelia said...making him a bronze mummy.**

“That’s pretty grim.” Travis frowned.

“It’s what he deserved.” Clarisse growled.

**The door of the bathhouse opened...It was as if King Minos had just dissolved.**

“No cleanup required at least.” Thalia said.

**“A painless death,” Daedalus mused...Father will be happy enough taking that old man’s gold.**

“Of course he will.” Hermes snorted.

“There was a  _ lot _ of gold.” Travis grinned.

**And Crete is a very long way away...“My prison may be my only sanctuary.”**

“He wants to hide in the Labyrinth?” Silena frowned.

“He doesn’t have an awful lot of choice.” Beckendorf pointed out. “Minos might not have been well liked but he was a powerful king.”

**“I do not understand,” Aelia said...“Or perhaps not.”**

Hades scowled. Once Minos was removed from his position, he would make sure Daedalus paid for avoiding death.

**He patted Aelia’s shoulder...My dream shifted.**

“Apparently your dreams are making up for lost time.” Triton grimaced.

“Just my luck.” Percy sighed.

**I was underground in a stone chamber...Why do you think we sent out solo explorers to begin with?**

Clarisse and Hermes both scowled angrily.

**But don’t worry. As soon we have the thread...Quintus will come through.**

“If he was a spy, why did he leave Camp and leave the hellhound behind?” Reyna frowned.

“Maybe he had all the information he needed. It’s clear the campers don’t have the string.” Dakota guessed.

“Doesn’t explain why he left the hellhound. Especially as a hellhound would be likely to be welcomed into Luke’s army. He probably already has loads.” Gwen said.

**All we have to do is reach the arena...“The dracaenae found a half-blood!”**

All of the gods were suddenly on full alert, wondering if they would find out one of their children had been driven insane. Hades glanced over at Nico worriedly.

**Luke scowled. “Alone? Wandering the maze?”...They’ve got him cornered.”**

“Were you ok?” Will whispered anxiously to Nico.

“Yeah. It wasn’t me Luke found.” He smiled.

“Thank the gods. I can only imagine how grouchy you would be if Percy had to rescue you again.” Will smirked.

  
“Oh shut up.” Nico nudged him with his shoulder. Will continued to chuckle.

**“Who is it?”...We may be able to use this half-blood. Come!”**

Percy winced, thinking about just how useful Ethan had been to Kronos.

**They ran down the corridor...which he didn’t seem too happy about.**

“She did keep trying to eat everyone.” Beckendorf defended himself. 

“You two get along just fine now.” Percy smiled.

  
“Yeah. She got used to me.” He grinned. “She’s not so bad when she’s not growling at everyone.”

**Then I hiked over Half-Blood Hill...“He left the ranch last night, heading back into the maze.”**

“Nico!” Hades yelled.

“I know. It was stupid.” Nico grimaced.

“It was beyond stupid.” His father glared at him. “My father would love to get his hands on you. Not to mention how dangerous the Labyrinth is even without the Titan army.”

“It wasn’t me he found.” Nico assured his father. That did make Hades let out a sigh of relief. Still, he glared unhappily at his son.

“You still shouldn’t have left the ranch.”

“I know.” Hades seemed to accept this, though he was glaring at the floor now instead of Nico.

**“Nico was gone before he woke up...Nico was talking with the ghost again, Minos.”**

“Just wonderful.” Hades groaned.

“You still listened to that creep?” Clarisse scowled furiously. 

“He seemed like he wanted to help me. I was still obsessed with my revenge.” Nico sighed.

**“He’s in danger,” I said...a half-blood alone in the maze.**

All of the gods with children exchanged worried looks. Hades was very glad that it wasn’t Nico but he felt sorry for whoever’s child had been found. It wouldn’t mean anything good for the demigod.

**Annabeth’s jaw clenched...less overwhelming than having a hellhound jump on you.**

Percy smiled. He missed his mom but he was definitely glad she was not here for the readings. She would probably have had several heart attacks. Or killed him.

**“I told them you were all right,” my mom said...I know firsthand how that feels.**

Poseidon grimaced at that reminder.

**She sat us down at the kitchen table...horse manure out of some monster’s stables?”**

Everyone chuckled, glad for the break in tension.

“To be fair he only did that under threat of his friend’s death.” Thalia pointed out.

“Don’t give my mom ideas.” Percy pretended to look horrified. She sniggered.

**Annabeth laughed...That’s my mom, always looking on the bright side.**

There was more laughter.

“Well that’s the most important thing to her.” Poseidon smiled. Apollo nodded and Percy smiled.

**“Yep,” I agreed. “That pretty much covers it.”...“He wanted to talk to you.”**

“Oh yeah. You set fire to his school.” Piper said with a smile.

  
“It wasn’t me.” Percy protested.

“Just the monster who was trying to kill you.” Leo laughed.

“As always.” Percy sighed.

**“Oh, right. The school.”...He believes that you’re not a bad person.**

“At least he’s got good instincts.” Apollo said.

**He doesn’t know what’s going on...And since you ran away, that looks bad.”**

“Yeah but it’s not like staying would have ended up any better. There was no explanation to give that they would understand.” Thalia sighed.

“Such is the curse of being a demigod.” Annabeth grimaced. 

**Annabeth was studying me...I’ll even tell him the truth if you want.”**

“He is a mortal.” Zeus scowled.

“And given how many attacks go on when I’m home, if he continued dating my mom he would have found out eventually.” Percy shrugged.

**My mom put her hand on my shoulder...“Well, yeah. I mean, he’ll think we’re crazy.”**

“You are.” Rachel laughed.

**“He already thinks that.”...things that caught your father’s attention, when we first met.**

Amphitrite hid a grimace but apparently wasn’t as successful as she would have liked given that her husband squeezed her hand gently. 

**Just be careful. Promise me you’ll be safe.”...“Keeping your son safe is a big job,**

“She’s not wrong.” Apollo grumbled. 

**though.” She folded her arms and glared...through more than just the Mist.**

“Or you two are fairly obvious.” Thalia laughed.

“Yeah. It doesn’t take a genius to work out what’s going on.” Grover said. Annabeth glared at Thalia while Percy did the same to Grover.

**It sounded like she understood what was...Without meaning to, I’d memorized it.**

Apollo frowned and grumbled under his breath while Rachel looked extraordinarily pleased.

“Seriously?” Annabeth complained. “You can’t remember the Greek stories that are our history but you can remember Rachel’s number without even trying?”

“My brain is weird.” Percy shrugged.

**We arranged a meeting in Times Square...and she was completely painted gold.**

“Why would you do that?” Reyna asked in surprise.

“It was for charity.” Rachel smiled. 

**I mean, her face, her hair, her clothes...She didn’t move or even blink that I could see.**

“Woah!” Connor whistled. “How did you manage that?”

“I’m not ADHD.” Rachel reminded him. “Plus I do stuff like that a lot so I’ve had a lot of practise.”

**Being ADHD and all, I could not have done that...“Maybe if we push her over,” Annabeth suggested.**

“Annabeth.” Chiron frowned.

“Sorry.” Annabeth said, though she didn’t sound particularly sorry.

“There is no need for that.” Reyna said.

“We were in a hurry.” Annabeth shrugged. 

**I thought that was a little mean...Nobody even looked twice at Rachel in her golden outfit.**

“It’s New York.” Rachel shrugged.

“Yeah. It’s probably not even the weirdest thing people will see that day.” Beckendorf grinned.

**“So,” she said, “it’s Annabell, right?”...They’re half Greek god!”**

“What are you doing?” Jason asked in surprise.

“Proving that nobody cares what we say.” Rachel grinned. 

**Nobody even looked over...What’s to be nervous about?”**

“She’s got a point.” Piper laughed. 

“Yet you don’t seem nervous.” Reyna pointed out.

“I wasn’t really.” Rachel admitted. “Not sure why though.”

**“Look,” I said. “I’m really sorry...“Was it hard?” Annabeth asked.**

“Geez, Annie.” Thalia frowned. “I know you don’t like a mortal helping out, plus you’re jealous, but there is no need to be so rude when you need her help.” She added quietly.

**“Okay, stop!” I intervened...she said. “Through a place I’ve never been.”**

“It sounds even more insane when you put it like that.” Silena laughed.

“Yeah and Rachel still agreed.” Percy grinned. “I guess that says all you need to know about her.”

“Hey, I might be insane but still less than you are.” Rachel shot back. Percy grinned. He couldn’t really deny that. He had done plenty of insane things in his life and he figured he was likely to do a lot more.

**“You can see through the Mist,” I said...“Yeah.”**

“At least you were honest.” Rachel said.

“I have been told I’m a terrible liar.” Percy grinned.

“You are.” Connor agreed.

“Besides, Annabeth would probably have corrected you about how dangerous it was in a hope of scaring Rachel into not coming.” Will said shrewdly. Annabeth grimaced.

“I don’t scare easily.” Rachel shrugged.

**“I thought you said monsters don’t care about mortals...“Nice guy,” Rachel said.**

“Not really.” Travis muttered bitterly.

**“He’s under the influence of a Titan,” Annabeth said defensively. “He’s been deceived.”**

Hermes gave a thin smile. He hoped the daughter of Athena was correct. That maybe there was still some hope for his son.

**Rachel looked back and forth between us...some sort of terrible condition, but Rachel just nodded.**

“I figured ignoring her was the easiest option.” Rachel admitted. 

“Probably.” Reyna agreed.

“Definitely easier than arguing. I’m glad you were so good about it.” Percy smiled gratefully. Rachel nodded.

**“Okay. What does an entrance to the Labyrinth...She pulled a big blue plastic hairbrush from her pocket**

Percy and Rachel exchanged grins at the mention of the hairbrush. 

**and started brushing the gold out of her hair...It’s got the mark of Daedalus.”**

“That’s handy.” Beckendorf noted.

“It was an odd symbol to have in a basement so it was noticeable.” Rachel shrugged.

“The chapter is over.” Persephone announced.

“Let us eat before we continue.” Chiron stated. Everyone headed for the dining hall. 


	15. My Brother Duels Me to the Death

Lunch was a quiet and quick affair. The gods were eager to continue reading to find out whose child had been found by Luke’s army. The demigods were much more subdued given what they knew was coming at the end of this book. 

Dionysus watched his son as Pollux picked at his food with a grim expression on his face. He wondered what was going on with his son and had no idea how to go about finding out. This time even Dakota seemed unable to pull his half brother into conversation.

Pollux knew his dad was watching him but he didn’t know what to say. His dad should probably know what they were going to read about but every time he tried to warn him, the words stuck in his throat. He desperately missed Castor. His brother would know what to do. Still, no matter how much his dad’s presence made him feel on edge, it did make him feel better. It was comforting. And Dakota was pretty cool too. At first it had felt wrong to even consider him a brother. He and Castor had been the only kids in the Dionysus cabin and so Pollux had never had another sibling besides his twin. To consider this Roman stranger as a brother almost felt like a betrayal but now he was slowly getting used to thinking of him as a new brother and not a replacement for Castor.

*********************************

“Annabeth!” Percy called as they walked out of the throne room. She turned and waited for him to catch up. “Can we talk?”

“Sure.” She agreed. As much as she didn’t want to, Annabeth knew it would be best to get this conversation out of the way. They took a side corridor and kept walking until they came to a bench. Percy sat down, fidgeting terribly. He was full of nervous energy.

“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean what I...Well I meant it but I didn’t mean to say it like that.” Percy said awkwardly. “I did have a crush on you but I...reading about our adventures made me think that we are better off as friends. Plus you still have feelings for Luke.” Percy knew he was rambling a little but he couldn’t help himself. Annabeth closed her eyes, looking pained.

“I don’t know how I feel about Luke.” She sighed.

“I think you do.” Percy said simply. “You just don’t want to admit it because he’s...not Luke at the moment.” She did appreciate his avoidance of the word ‘evil’ but knew he was thinking it. Deep down she knew he was right but had no intention of saying that out loud. “You’re still one of my best and closest friends.” He said and she could see the earnestness in his eyes. 

“I will always be your friend.” Annabeth told him. And she meant it. Sure, she still had a stupid crush on him but she wouldn’t let it affect their friendship. She would get over it. No matter how long it took. 

The silence that overtook them was still slightly awkward until it was broken by a loud rumble from Percy’s stomach. He grinned sheepishly as Annabeth rolled her eyes fondly.

“Come on. Let’s go and eat.” She said.

“Great idea.” He agreed, eager to get away from the tension and find some food. They made their way back to the dining room where Percy went to sit with his father. Annabeth went to sit away from the others, not finding herself in a mood to socialise.

*********************************

Connor excused himself from his brother’s side to go and sit with Annabeth who was sitting alone. Thalia had been roped into sitting with her father once more.

“Hey.” He grinned cheerfully.

“Hi.” She replied, looking at him with only a little caution. He considered that progress. Usually her gaze was accusatory...and in fairness it was usually deserved. “What’s up?”

“Figured you could use some company.” He told her truthfully.

“Not particularly.” She shrugged. “I don’t feel like talking.”

“Alright. I’ll just sit then.” Connor shrugged. He sat down and began eating his food in silence. Annabeth frowned at him in confusion and then turned to her own food. The silence wasn’t as awkward as Connor had been expecting. In fact it was quite companionable. They both finished eating pretty quickly though Annabeth had shot him more than a few mildly disgusted looks at his table manners which made him smirk.

“Seriously? How do you eat like that?” She asked suddenly.

“At the Hermes table you get used to eating quickly before your food gets stolen.” He explained with a grin. In fact they usually had a challenge to see who could steal the most food during mealtimes.

“Fair enough.” Annabeth had no difficulty believing that. “We should get back to the reading.”

“Yeah.” Connor said, good mood suddenly gone. “This is going to be so much fun.” He added sarcastically.

“It’s going to suck.” Annabeth grimaced. She knew her own behaviour had hardly gotten better let alone everything with Pan and the final battle at Camp. 

“Best to get it over with then.” Connor sighed. 

************************

Apollo went to grab Will and Michael before they could sit down. He ushered them over to a quiet corner. They watched him curiously as they all sat down.

“Look guys, I need to talk to you about something.” Apollo began, running a hand through his hair.

“Sure dad.” Michael agreed, looking pleased.

“Is this about Percy?” Will asked, looking decidedly more anxious than his brother. 

“Percy? Why would dad need to talk to us about Percy?” Michael frowned.

“Well, Percy and I have been spending a lot of time together recently. I’ve been helping him with some issues given what he’s gone through.” Apollo knew he couldn’t delay forever. He was contemplating taking them to his quarters for this conversation instead of just a quiet corner but it was a bit late.

“Ok. That’s nice of you.” Michael said, still looking both confused and a little wary.

“And, well...I…” Apollo took a deep breath. “I love him.” 

“WHAT?” Michael’s yelp was quite high pitched and very loud.

“Shhhhh.” Apollo hissed, glancing around. A couple of people looked over at them, startled but nobody said anything. “I love Percy.” He said again, quietly.

“But that’s...he’s..!” Will couldn’t make coherent sentences. Even with the warning his dad had given him a while ago, he couldn’t wrap his head around the idea. “Are you two dating?”

“Yes.” Apollo nodded. Both of his kids gaped at him. “But it’s new, brand new as of this morning, and tentative. I’m only telling you because I didn’t want you to find out during the reading or something.” 

“Well, we appreciate that.” Will nodded. That would have really sucked. 

“I know this is weird for you guys.” Apollo said. “And I’m sorry for that. I know you’ll need some time to get your heads round it but please don’t tell anyone else. We want to keep it quiet while we get used to it ourselves.”

“Sure, dad.” Michael agreed easily. Frankly he never wanted to speak of this ever again, let alone tell other campers about it. Not that he would ever spill his dad’s secrets anyway. Will nodded his own agreement. Apollo clapped both of them on the shoulder and then the group made their way back to the rest of the room to eat. 

Once everyone was done, they made their way back to the throne room. Everyone took the same seats as before.

“I’ll read.” Grover offered once everyone was sitting down. It had been his turn before the new arrivals interrupted.

**My brother duels me to the death**

Poseidon grimaced. That meant one of his children was going to die. They might be monstrous but they were still his children. 

**The metal door was half hidden behind...“It hasn’t been used in a long time,” Annabeth said.**

“It doesn’t seem to be a particularly useful location to come out at.” Beckendorf pointed out.

“You don’t exactly know where you’re going to come out when you use an exit.” Percy reminded him.

**“I tried to open it once,” Rachel said...I couldn’t tell if she was pretending or not.**

“I was.” Rachel confirmed.

“Mortals.” Octavian scoffed.

“I don’t blame you.” Reyna said loudly, elbowing Octavian in the ribs harshly.

“Ow!” He complained under his breath.

“You had just been told you could die helping out people you barely knew. I’d be worried if you were calm and not afraid.” Reyna continued as if Octavian had not spoken. Rachel threw the augur a dirty look but smiled at Reyna. 

“It was worth it.” 

**She’d changed into a ratty Museum...A skeleton was grinning at us.**

“Well that’s a great first encounter.” Silena said, giving Rachel a sympathetic look.

**It wasn’t human. It was huge, for one thing...made a kind of giant X over the tunnel.**

“That’s gross.” Piper wrinkled her nose. 

“And onimnous.” Triton frowned, glancing over towards Tyson.

**But what really sent shivers down my spine...I didn’t want to meet.**

“Agreed.” Will nodded.

**Rachel swallowed. “You have a friend who’s a Cyclops?”...To the left, the tunnel was dirt and tree roots.**

“Isn’t that the tunnel you took earlier?” Triton looked at Tyson.

“Maybe. It sounds similar.” Tyson shrugged.

**I pointed left. “That looks like the tunnel Tyson...toward Daedalus’s workshop.”**

“That hasn’t worked so far.” Beckendorf frowned. “I get why you think that but the maze is such a patchwork that you could go for a few feet down the ancient tunnel and come to a new part.” 

“I know.” Annabeth sighed. “I just didn’t have any better ideas.” Admitting that left a bitter taste in her mouth.

**“We need to go straight,” Rachel said...“That’s the least likely choice,” Annabeth said.**

“In a way I guess it makes sense. The way you are least likely to go leads to where you want to go.” Silena smiled slightly.

“Yeah.” Piper agreed.

**“You don’t see it?” Rachel asked...I don’t think we should risk it.”**

“That’s very cool.” Leo whistled.

Hazel frowned and studied Rachel. That sounded kind of similar to her ability underground. She guessed it was only because of the Labyrinth but it was still interesting to hear about it from someone else’s perspective.

**I didn’t see anything like she was describing...“You believe her?” Annabeth asked.**

“Well that is why you went to her.” Reyna pointed out.

“Yeah but it was still hard to believe given that we couldn’t see any of that stuff.” Annabeth shrugged.

“Fair enough. I would be a little sceptical too.” Thalia nodded. 

“Handy that she can see traps too.” Leo noted.

**“Yeah,” I said. “Don’t you?”...“I don’t know,” I said. “It never was before.”**

“Lulling you into a false sense of security?” Jason guessed.

“Or it’s just another way of making you think you’re going in the wrong direction.” Beckendorf suggested.

**“So, Rachel,” Annabeth said...parents going to be worried if you’re out late?”**

“That’s a valid question.” Poseidon said with a small frown. 

“They wouldn’t notice.” Rachel shrugged.

“What? How could they not notice?” Reyna frowned anxiously. 

“I’m sure it’ll come up.” Rachel grimaced. She had no desire to discuss it twice.

**Rachel exhaled. “Not likely. I could be gone a week and they’d never notice.”**

“While that’s a terrible thing, being gone a week is a definite possibility.” Chris pointed out.

**“Why not?” This time Annabeth didn’t sound as sarcastic...“Oh, that’s very helpful. I mean, what is it?”**

“You probably don’t want to find out.” Clarisse muttered.

“Definitely not.” Percy sighed.

**Then I heard heavy footsteps shaking the corridor...Standing between them was Kelli, the empousa cheerleader.**

“Oh good. Her again.” Thalia groaned.

**“Well, well,” Kelli said...“Taking your little mortal pet for a walk?”**

“Pet?” Rachel spat angrily, not having been able to do so at the time.

**Kelli asked me. “They’re such fragile things. So easy to break!”**

“I wouldn’t count on that.” Percy said with a smirk. “Rachel can be pretty darn dangerous.”

“Damn right.” Rachel grinned.

**Behind us, the footsteps came closer...Nobody seemed to worry about us running forward.**

“I’m guessing that would be because they want you to go that way.” Hermes said.

“They were going that way anyway.” Ares pointed out.

“Yeah but then they started running away.” Aphrodite reminded her lover.

**That was the direction they wanted us to go….From behind them came a muffled roar, like from a crowd.**

“Well didn’t Luke say something about having to go through an arena to get anywhere in the maze?” Will tried to recall. 

“I think so. Which means they would have ended up there anyway.” Nico nodded.

**“Oh, yessssss,” said the snake woman on my left...Immediately I thought of Tyson, but that was impossible.**

“Not me, brother.” Tyson said sadly.

“I know, big guy. But we found you eventually.” Percy gave him a smile.

**What was she talking about?...“I’m sorry. I’ll get you out of this.”**

“I trusted you.” Rachel smiled. “Although I didn’t have a lot of choice.” 

**She nodded as much as she could with...bird, reptile, insect, mammal.**

“That sounds...terrifying.” Piper said nervously.

“It was certainly interesting to look at.” Percy told her. “I still don’t know what half of those monsters were.” 

**But the creepiest things were the skulls...Believe me, you don’t want me to.**

“You’re right. We really don’t.” Gwen agreed.

“That sounds completely disgusting.” Dakota muttered.

“Why do monsters have a fascination with skulls?” Leo wondered.

“They are probably considered to be a sacrifice to someone.” Beckendorf answered, looking grim. Poseidon winced. If this chapter was about a monstrous son of his then it was likely those were supposed to be for him. 

**In the middle of all this, proudly displayed...What was that doing in a horrible place like this?**

Poseidon grimaced at the confirmation of his previous thought. Amphitrite gave his hand a squeeze.

“It is not your fault.” She whispered.

“It is to me those sacrifices are dedicated.” He sighed. “It is my son who is doing this.” 

**Above the banner, sitting in a seat of honor, was an old enemy.**

Hermes grimaced. It wasn’t unexpected but it still hurt every time his son was mentioned.

**I’m not sure he could hear me over the roar...which I thought was strange.**

“I guess it’s still with the telkhine things.” Beckendorf said.

“Yeah. Percy must have interrupted whatever they were doing to it.” Leo agreed.

“I’m good at that.” Percy smirked.

**Next to him sat the largest giant I’d ever seen...dark red and tattooed with blue wave designs.**

Poseidon grimaced even more. He knew which of his children that was and it was not good for Percy. Clearly his demigod son won the fight or something intervened but it would certainly not be easy. He hoped Percy would not be too badly injured.

**I figured he must be Luke’s new bodyguard...hadn’t reappeared in my pocket yet.**

“That’s taking it’s time.” Thalia frowned. 

“Yeah. It’s kind of random how long it takes to reappear but at least it does come back eventually.” Percy shrugged. “Better than not at all.”

“True.” She agreed.

**The centaur struggled to get up as the giant...huge foot on the horseman’s chest and raised the javelin.**

“That is horrible.” Silena frowned.

“Yeah. The whole thing was terrible.” Percy agreed. He definitely did not regret killing Antaeus. The only thing he regretted was being related to him in any way.

**He looked up at Luke. The crowd cheered...the centaur was gone, disintegrated to ashes.**

Chiron closed his eyes and let out a regretful sigh. 

**All that was left was a single hoof...I could tell he didn’t like being called son of Hermes.**

Hermes looked pained while his children all looked angry.

“He doesn’t deserve that title.” Connor growled. Travis was about to agree when he caught sight of his father’s expression and closed his mouth. 

**He hated his father. But he rose calmly...Antaeus growled. “I want entertainment!”**

“I’d be happy to entertain you.” Clarisse scowled. “By killing you.” 

“That will not be so easy.” Ares warned her. “He is also a son of Gaia. The earth heals him.” Leo turned to look at Poseidon with a grossed out expression.

“You and Queen dirt face?” He burst out in disgust. Poseidon looked startled and raised an eyebrow at the son of Hephaestus.

“Queen dirt face?” Percy sniggered before his dad could say anything.

“You’ve met Gaia?” Hephaestus asked his son worriedly. That did not bode well for the future. Leo suddenly looked sheepish.

“Er...spoilers?” He grinned. The god of forges felt even more anxious at this response. All of the other gods exchanged worried looks. Why would a demigod know Gaia enough to give her a nickname? Grover took the opportunity to keep reading before the gods asked any more questions.

**Luke bowed. “I believe I have something...caught me on the cheek and made a good-sized cut.**

Poseidon and Apollo both scowled angrily.

**Antaeus’s eyes lit up. “A son of Poseidon?...really spectacular way or I’d be in big trouble.**

“Let’s face it, if Percy were to die it would definitely be in a spectacular way.” Thalia laughed. “It’s the only way he knows how to do things.”

“I’m not sure if that’s meant to be a compliment or not.” Percy frowned. Thalia smirked and didn’t answer.

**“Luke!” Annabeth yelled...He looked stunned for a moment. “Annabeth?”**

“He clearly doesn’t know Annabeth that well if he’s surprised that she’s in the Labyrinth. She’s been obsessed with it for years.” Grover snorted.

“Yeah, and there is no way she’d let Percy go in there without her.” Thalia agreed. 

“Clearly Quintus didn’t tell Luke everything then or he would know this is Annabeth’s quest.” Katie realised.

“Maybe he just hasn’t gotten the chance yet.” Dakota suggested.

**“Enough time for the females to fight...“I am his favorite son!” Antaeus boomed.**

“Certainly not.” Triton snorted. “Not even close. Even if Percy wasn’t his favourite, it still wouldn’t be you.” Amphitrite’s expression tightened for a split second at the way her son casually stated that her husband’s demigod son was his favourite. She may have accepted, and even come to like, Percy but that didn’t mean she approved of the fact that her husband favoured him over their son.

“Indeed.” Poseidon smiled at Triton, glad to hear there was no bitterness or jealousy in his son’s tone.

**“Behold, my temple to the Earthshaker, built from the skulls of all those I’ve killed in his name!**

Poseidon grimaced once more. 

**Your skull shall join them!”...a Father’s Day card, much less somebody’s skull.**

“I certainly don’t want somebody’s skull.” Poseidon stated firmly. “Though a Father’s Day card wouldn’t go amiss.”

“Sure thing, dad.” Percy grinned.

**“Percy!” Annabeth yelled at me...That would make him even harder to kill.**

“At least you knew it was important.” Annabeth sighed.

“I do listen to you sometimes.” Percy grinned. “I even figured out what you were trying to tell me but I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“You would have figured it out eventually.” Annabeth smiled. “You can be pretty smart sometimes.”

**“You’re crazy, Antaeus,” I said. “If you think this is a good tribute, you know nothing about Poseidon.”**

Poseidon smiled, pleased his son recognised this. 

**The crowd screamed insults at me...Shields? Nets? Flamethrowers?”**

“Flamethrowers?” Frank said. “That’s an option?”

“Only if I brought one with me I presume.” Percy shrugged. “I doubt they were going to give me one.” 

**“Just my sword,” I said...she vaporized into nothing, and the cheering of the crowd died.**

“If only you could do that to Kelli.” Reyna said.

**“No!” Antaeus bellowed. “Too fast! You must wait...his left eye was covered with an eye patch.**

Percy sighed. Despite what Ethan had done he still couldn’t bring himself to regret saving his life. Annabeth was glaring at the book angrily. Logically she knew if Ethan hadn’t pledged himself to Kronos then some other demigod would have done but she couldn’t help but partly blame him for what had happened to Luke. It had been his pledge that resurrected Kronos into Luke’s body and she hated him for it.

“That description sounds familiar.” Travis frowned.

“Yeah. He was in the Hermes Cabin.” Connor said, looking thoughtful.

“Not..?” Hermes couldn’t bring himself to finish his question.

“No. He was unclaimed but we were pretty sure he wasn’t our half brother.” Travis assured their father. 

**He was thin and wiry so his Greek armor...Ethan told me. “Only way to join up.”**

“The only way to join up is to fight to the death?” Clarisse snorted. “At least it’ll thin their numbers.”

**And with that he charged...Camp Half-Blood, as far as I knew, but he’d been trained.**

“He left before you got to Camp. He didn’t stay long.” Annabeth explained. 

**He parried my strike and almost slammed me...He needed to impress them. I didn’t.**

Ares nodded in agreement though he didn’t look too happy about it.

**He yelled an angry battle cry and charged me...but I also was lighter and faster.**

“You almost always are.” Clarisse said. 

“I prefer it that way.” Percy shrugged. “Never did like to be weighed down by a ton of armour.”

**The crowd went nuts, yelling complaints...I put the tip of my sword on his chest.**

“Nice.” Apollo smiled. “Good job.” 

**“Get it over with,” Ethan groaned...“No one dishonors the games!” Antaeus bellowed.**

“Percy does.” Tyson said proudly. “Antaeus is bad brother.” He added sadly.

“Yeah he is.” Percy agreed.

**“Your heads shall both be tributes to Poseidon!”...Dad’s favor, come down here and prove it!”**

“He might not have my favour but I do not get involved in my children’s fights.” Poseidon reminded Percy with a frown.

“I know, dad. I didn’t expect you to favour either of us.” Percy smiled. His father nodded, still looking distinctly unhappy though Percy recognised he was not upset with him but with the situation.

**The monsters grumbled in the stands...“I have been wrestling since the first pankration!”**

“Didn’t Hercules beat him?” Beckendorf asked, trying to remember.

“Yes.” Zeus nodded, looking proud.

“Oh good. More things Hercules has done that I did.” Percy grumbled.

“Yeah but I’m sure your way was far more entertaining.” Annabeth laughed.

“Of course.” Percy grinned.

**“Pankration?” I asked...Swear upon the River Styx.”**

“Nice idea with the Styx thing but even if Antaeus agrees, if he dies there is no guarantee Luke will uphold those terms unless you make him swear too.” Hermes grimaced, spotting the loophole easily enough.

“There is no reason for Luke to swear to those terms anyway.” Apollo sighed. “Besides, doesn’t Luke need Antaeus to grant him passage? If Percy kills him then Luke doesn’t have that issue anymore.”

“Great so either Percy dies or helps Luke out.” Triton groaned. 

“They still have the advantage by having Rachel on their side. They can still make it to Daedalus first.” Gwen pointed out. 

“I don’t think Daedalus is the answer.” Reyna said, thinking hard. She had a horrible suspicion where Daedalus was and if she was correct he was unlikely to be any help whatsoever.

**Antaeus laughed. “This shouldn’t take long...made brushing after meals a real pain.**

“Woah. I think that’s taking his parentage a bit seriously.” Pollux muttered. “No offense.” He added, glancing in Poseidon’s direction.

“None taken.” The god smiled slightly. 

**“Weapons?” he asked...I rolled under his legs and stabbed him in the back of the thigh.**

“Good start.” Apollo said encouragingly.

**“Argggh!” he yelled. But where blood...I was thrown across the arena, weaponless.**

“Oh. That’s less good.” The sun god bit his lip and grabbed Percy’s hand to assure himself the son of the sea god was fine.

**Antaeus bellowed in pain...I couldn’t hurt him as long as he was touching the ground.**

“Stupid dirt face.” Leo grumbled. He figured they were going to run into a lot more monsters like that on their journey to take out Gaia. 

“Well at least you know that now.” Katie tried to be optimistic.

“And cue one of Percy’s insane ideas.” Thalia grinned eagerly.

**I tried to skirt around him...Suddenly I had an idea.**

“This should be good.” Connor grinned.

“It was definitely interesting to watch.” Annabeth smiled at him.

**I feinted to the other side...“Not a worthy son of the sea god!”**

“You are the one who is not worthy.” Triton said haughtily.

**I felt my pen return to my pocket...kicking off his forearm, scrambling up his shoulder like it was a ladder,**

“You do like using monsters as springboards to jump around.” Clarisse noted in amusement.

“And yet I never did like gym class.” Percy grinned.

“You must have been pretty good though.” Rachel said.

“Not really. Not until after I started going to Camp anyway. Being a demigod might be constantly life threatening but it’s good for your fitness.” Percy told her with a laugh.

**placing my shoe on his head...Or are you too slow and fat?”**

“I imagine climbing the chains would be difficult for a guy that size.” Chris nodded.

“At least your taunts are getting a little better.” Clarisse snorted. 

“Hard to get worse than calling the minotaur ‘ground beef’.” Silena laughed.

**He howled and made another grab for me...swinging and cutting like I was some sort of crazed monkey.**

“You did kind of look like one.” Rachel smirked. He stuck his tongue out at her.

“Definitely crazy anyway.” Annabeth grinned. Percy pouted.

“You definitely have a unique way of doing things.” Reyna said, looking amused.

“Stupid Greeks. No discipline.” Octavian muttered to himself.

**I made loops with hooks and metal links...I have a gift for getting stuff tangled up.**

“That sounds about right.” Amphitrite said in amusement. She gave her husband a fond look as he tried to look innocent.

**Plus I was desperate to save my friends...My hands were raw from climbing.**

“Were you hurt badly?” Apollo asked quietly.

“No. A little sore but they healed up quickly.” Percy assured him.

**“Get me down!” Antaeus demanded...a really big loincloth on a hook,**

“Talk about a gross spoil of war.” Piper wrinkled her nose. 

“Yeah. I didn’t keep that one.” Percy said, looking grossed out.

“I would worry about you if you had.” Katie said.

**and a bunch of grinning skulls dancing above me...“I should have killed you long ago!”**

“You tried that and failed. Several times.” Apollo scoffed derisively, though he looked furious.

**“You tired,” I reminded him. “Let us go, Luke…He did just what I expected.**

“At least you were expecting it.” Hermes sighed. He wondered if his son’s betrayal would ever get easier to hear. Somehow he doubted it. 

“Once a traitor always a traitor.” Travis muttered.

**He said, “Antaeus is dead. His oath dies with him...For days I’d avoided using Quintus’s gift.**

“Well it can’t exactly get much worse.” Beckendorf pointed out.

**It had to be a trap. But now…shattered into shards of ice, melting in my hand.**

“Ookay? Did it actually do anything?” Jason wondered.

“Yes.” Hades answered. “That is why the whistle could only be used once but it did work.”

**Luke laughed. “What was that supposed to do?”...tossed her through the air, straight into Luke’s lap.**

“Go Mrs O’Leary.” Beckendorf cheered.

“Couldn’t have happened to a nicer monster.” Rachel snickered.

“The Greeks calling on a hellhound for help.” Octavian wrinkled his nose in disgust.

“Whatever you have to do to survive.” Reyna shrugged. 

“Still, they are terribly undisciplined and friends with monsters. Why are we hearing about this?” Octavian wanted to know. “This is pointless.”

“The gods would not have brought us here without reason.” Reyna said sternly. “Now be quiet.” 

**Mrs. O’Leary snarled, and the two dracaenae...audience were caught completely by surprise.**

“That won’t last long. Hurry up and leave.” Athena advised.

**“Let’s go!” I yelled at my friends...entire army trying to jump out of the stands and follow us.**

“Chapter’s done.” Grover said.

“That makes it my turn.” Nico sighed. Grover tossed him the book which he caught neatly. 


	16. We Steal Some Slightly Used Wings

“So you find Daedalus then?” Leo asked eagerly. “And steal some of his wings. Cool.”

“Not cool.” Thalia muttered. “If they’re stealing wings I assume they’re going flying.”

**“This way!” Rachel yelled...“You led us straight into that death trap!”**

“Yeah, that wouldn’t be a good impression.” Reyna nodded. “But you had to go that way.” 

“I know that now.” Annabeth nodded. “But we didn’t know then that you had to go through the arena to get anywhere.”

“Fair enough. And let’s be honest, that dude needed to be killed.” Pollux said grimly.

**“It was the way you needed to go,” Rachel said...Then we kept going as if nothing had happened.**

“Very handy.” Beckendorf nodded in approval. 

“Yeah. Although there didn’t seem to be that many traps overall.” Leo frowned.

“I don’t think the maze really needs traps.” Beckendorf told him. “It’s dangerous enough as it is.”

**I lost track of how many turns we made...I hadn’t even waited to make sure she was following us.**

“I think Mrs O’Leary can handle herself.” Nico smiled.

“She certainly can.” Percy agreed.

**Ethan collapsed on the floor. “You people are crazy.” He pulled off his helmet. His face gleamed with sweat.**

“You get used to it.” Grover laughed.

“Speak for yourself.” Rachel said but she was grinning.

“You will get used to it eventually.” Reyna told her. “Especially if you continue hanging out with Percy.”

“At least life will never be boring.” Rachel snorted.

**Annabeth gasped. “I remember you!...“The one Luke’s people cornered. It wasn’t Nico after all.”**

“Good.” Hades breathed. Despite Nico telling him that it hadn’t been him Luke had caught, having official confirmation made him breathe a little easier.

**“Who’s Nico?”...Annabeth said. “Gee, I wonder.”**

“That’s a pretty good point.” Piper said.

**Ethan struggled to his feet. “I’m not going to argue...head off alone into the maze? That’s suicide.”**

“He survived before.” Will pointed out.

“Then got captured by Luke’s army.” Katie reminded him.

“Which he actually seemed pretty happy about.” Nico scowled.

**He looked at me with barely controlled anger...Mercy has no place in this war.”**

Ares nodded in agreement.

“Wow, not many people are upset when you save their life.” Gwen said in surprise.

“Probably thinks it’ll make it harder for him to join up.” Dakota scoffed.

“So would being dead.” Frank said flatly.

**Then he ran off into the darkness...“Something was wrong with Luke,” Annabeth muttered,**

“Have you only just noticed?” Clarisse said scathingly. Annabeth glared at her.

**poking at the fire with her knife. “Did you notice the way he was acting?”**

“He did seem a little nervous.” Thalia nodded. It made sense too, given what he had done shortly afterwards. Anyone would be nervous about being possessed by Kronos.

“Exactly.” Annabeth smiled, glad someone understood.

“Well whatever he is nervous about is his own fault.” Frank pointed out. “He should have known what he was getting into serving Kronos.” Annabeth glared at him now but he just shrugged.

**“He looked pretty pleased to me,” I said...“You’re impossible,” Annabeth grumbled.**

“I think Percy has a point. He spared you while ordering the others to be killed.” Nico said.

“I might have been able to help him.” Annabeth sighed. She had often wondered if she would have been able to talk him out of it if she had gone to him then, or when he came to her house. 

“Or he would have gloated a little and then had you killed.” Clarisse said. 

“He wouldn’t.”

“He’s ordered your death before this. At least twice.” Will pointed out. Annabeth scowled around the room. It was like they all  _ wanted _ Luke to be evil. 

**She sheathed her dagger and looked at Rachel...Rachel hardly bothered to answer.**

“Rachel seemed to be ignoring her before that anyway.” Reyna pointed out with a frown.

“Besides, almost dying is probably a decent recent to be a bit subdued.” Katie said.

**She’d burned the tip of a stick in the fire...And she marched off into the shadows.**

“There isn’t a lot of strategy to discuss. You follow Rachel.” Triton frowned.

**Rachel drew another figure with her stick...“I don’t know what her problem is.”**

“Really, Percy?” Thalia laughed. “You didn’t have a clue?”

“No.” Percy muttered, going red. 

“It’s a talent to be as observant as you are and yet be so oblivious at the same time.” Silena chuckled.

**Rachel raised her eyebrows...“Boys,” she muttered. “Totally blind.”**

“Hey!” All of the males protested.

“The mortal is correct.” Aphrodite smiled. She had been enjoying the delightful tension in the book as the love triangle emerged but now she looked around the room she found her gaze drawn to Percy and Apollo. She narrowed her eyes. Something had happened. Not having her blasted powers had never been more annoying but she almost squealed as she spotted that Apollo had moved from having a little crush to almost full blown love. She just about managed to restrain herself but inside she was doing a gleeful dance.

**“Hey, don’t you get on my case, too!...I thought you were going to die.”**

“That happens a lot.” Grover sighed. “Not that that’s much comfort.”

“Yeah. I get that now but it was still scary to watch.” Rachel said.

“I don’t blame you. You’re actually coping pretty well.” Grover assured her.

**She sounded like she was close to crying.**

**“Hey, I’m usually about to die,” I promised. “Don’t feel bad.”**

“Yeah, definitely not comforting.” Apollo muttered.

“At last I’ve also had practise at getting myself  _ out _ of those situations.” Percy grinned. Apollo nodded but bit his lip in concern. Someday Percy’s luck was going to run out. Someday he was probably going to end up in a situation he couldn’t get out of. 

**She studied my face...Don’t you ever get to do just, you know, normal stuff?”**

“Not these days.” Percy sighed. “I might not have a normal life but I wouldn’t change the life I do have.” Poseidon smiled at his son.

**I’d never really thought about it like that...Rachel shrugged. “I paint. I read a lot.”**

“You seem very good at drawing.” Reyna smiled.

“Yeah, that’s practise. I do draw an awful lot.” Rachel smiled back. 

“What made you start?” 

“I started when I realised I could see stuff that other people couldn’t. I drew all of the things I could see. My parents just thought it was an overactive imagination.” Rachel grimaced slightly. “But I enjoyed doing it so I started drawing other stuff too.”

**Okay, I thought. So far we are scoring a zero...I may sleep for a while, okay?”**

“You’ll tell him eventually.” Thalia said. “We all do.” She added with a fake grimace.

“Yeah.” Rachel sighed.

“It’s not my fault you’re a blabbermouth.” Percy rolled his eyes at Thalia.

“I am not!” She glared at him. Nico kept reading before an argument could break out.

**“Oh, sure. Sorry if…”...I got the feeling she wasn’t really asleep.**

“You got that right.” Rachel admitted.

**A few minutes later, Annabeth came back...I fell asleep as soon as my eyes closed.**

“Oh good. I’m guessing we’re about to get more Percy dreams.” Triton groaned.

“They might suck but they do have useful information in.” Thalia said.

**In my dreams I heard laughter...Below me the darkness seethed like inky soup.**

“Again?” Poseidon grimaced. He really was sick of hearing about his son being anywhere near that pit, even in his dreams.

**“So close to your own destruction, little hero,”...“You have assured my rise.”**

Percy frowned. It was true in a way. He had spared Ethan who had gone on to raise Kronos. He shook his head to clear it. No. If it hadn’t been Ethan it would have been someone else. 

“You ok?” Apollo asked quietly.

“Yeah.” Percy nodded. “I’m fine.”

“Well given your general use of the word ‘fine’ that tells me you most certainly are not ok.” Apollo smirked slightly. Percy rolled his eyes. 

“It was just an errant thought. I’m alright.” He said firmly. Apollo nodded but tightened his grip on Percy’s hand just a little bit. 

**The shadows in the cavern became deeper...a glimpse of the friends you abandoned…”**

“Percy didn’t abandon us.” Tyson growled.

**The darkness rippled around me...its body barely fit through the tunnel.**

“Oh.” Grover shuddered. “This was horrible.”

“Mean snake.” Tyson grumbled.

**Its scales were coppery...a club and knocked him off his feet.**

“Tyson! Were you alright?” Poseidon asked worriedly.

“Yes. Goat boy saved me.” Tyson grinned toothily.

“You did most of it yourself.” Grover shrugged.

“You have my thanks.” Poseidon said. Grover went red. 

**“No!” Grover yelled. But before Tyson...he might as well have been banging on a stone wall.**

“Playing them might be more useful than hitting it with them.” Thalia suggested lightly.

“I panicked. I played them in the end.” Grover defended.

**The whole room shook as the snake flexed its muscles, shuddering to overcome Tyson’s strength.**

**Grover began to play with pipes...I said. “We have to help him!”**

“Grover was in trouble too!” Grover reminded his friend indignantly. Percy just smirked and rolled his eyes.

“The snake was squeezing the life out of Tyson not you.” 

“The cave was collapsing!”

“Because of your pipes.”

“It was not my pipes!”

“Sure, sure.”

“You’re impossible.” Grover glared. Then they both burst out laughing.

**“First things first,” she said. “Earthquake!”...Annabeth said. “I like this way after all.”**

“Yeah, any route that’s not collapsing is a good one.” Beckendorf agreed.

**It wasn’t long before we saw light up ahead...“This way,” Rachel said, beginning to run. “We’re close!”**

“Good.” Leo said, feeling excited. He couldn’t wait to hear about the workshop again.

“Hopefully before Luke.” Dakota said.

**“This is so wrong!” Annabeth said...at eye level, was a large blue Greek Δ.**

“You found it.” Beckendorf grinned. He knew they had been there but this book would be sure to give a much better description than the one he had been given when Annabeth and Percy gave their report.

**“We’re here,” Rachel announced. “Daedalus’s workshop.”...“So much for ancient architecture,” I said.**

“Percy.” Thalia hissed as Annabeth glared at the floor. “That wasn’t nice.” Percy grimaced. He hadn’t meant to make Annabeth feel even worse. 

“Sorry Annabeth.” He said. “I know you did your best and you did make a good quest leader.” She gave him a faint smile but looked away immediately. The fact was, she  _ hadn’t _ made a great quest leader. She had failed to navigate the maze, she had been completely wrong about where the workshop would be and had been horrible to Rachel over her stupid jealousy. Which had turned out to be completely pointless given that apparently Percy didn’t even like her that way anymore. Her scowl deepened. 

“Hey, you ok?” Piper leaned over to ask. This Annabeth might not be as close to her as the Annabeth from her time but they were still friends. 

“Yeah.” Annabeth said. Piper just raised an eyebrow at her. “Ok, I hate reading this and I have no idea how Percy has coped this long without going insane.” Piper nodded. Thalia squeezed her friend’s arm and Annabeth smiled gratefully at both of them. She made a mental note to spend more time with Piper in the future.

**Annabeth scowled...that looked like Leonardo da Vinci sketches.**

Beckendorf and Leo both looked interested, wishing Percy would describe the sketches in more detail.

**Several laptop computers were scattered around...were several sets of bronze and silver wings.**

“That sounds so cool.” Beckendorf breathed. He wished he could have seen it himself.

“I can’t believe you’re going to steal some of his wings.” Leo muttered.

**“Di immortals,” Annabeth muttered...self-adhesive strips ran down the sides.**

“Nice improvement.” Leo nodded.

“Yeah that stuff won’t fail.” Connor grinned. “It’s super sticky.”

**I kept my hand on Riptide...collection of red mesas and boulders and spires of stone.**

“The Garden of the Gods.” Demeter said with a slight smile.

**It looked like some huge kid had been building a toy city with skyscraper-size blocks, and then decided to knock it over.**

The gods all looked affronted by this.

**“Where are we?” I wondered...was our missing sword master Quintus.**

Reyna nodded to herself while Athena looked unhappy. Her son had fallen so far.

“Wait, if he is there, does that mean Luke’s army has already been?” Frank wondered anxiously.

“Or he’s just finished leading them there.” Hazel guessed.

“Why would he know where the workshop is?” Frank frowned. 

“Why do you think?” Reyna asked him. Frank thought for a second until his eyes widened. 

“No way?” He breathed. She nodded.

**“You,” Annabeth said...and his counselor’s T-shirt from Camp Half-Blood,**

“But he’s a spy. Why would he wear that?” Jason wondered.

**which seemed like an insult now...“But you’re wrong. I work only for myself.”**

“It doesn’t really matter whether you work for yourself or for Luke, if you’re giving him information then you’re still an enemy.” Clarisse scowled.

**“Luke mentioned you,” I said...Another princess who came to grief.”**

“Why would Daedalus help Luke though?” Gwen asked. 

“Luke must have offered him something he wanted.” Reyna said.

**“Enough games,” I said...You’re a swordsman!”**

Everybody sniggered.

“After being alive for a couple of thousand years he’s probably pretty good at a lot of different things.” Thalia pointed out.

“Yeah, plus if he has been wandering around the Labyrinth he would need to be able to defend himself.” Reyna stated. “I suspect you don’t survive for two thousand years without being able to defend yourself.”

**“I am both,” Quintus said...“Like I can paint with my feet as well as my hands.”**

“That’s pretty cool.” Katie said.

“And weird.” Leo said. “Why would you learn to do that?”

“Why not?” Rachel shrugged. “I had plenty of time.”

**“You see?” Quintus said. “A girl of many talents.”...You made yourself a new body.”**

“That shouldn’t be possible.” Beckendorf grimaced. 

“He obviously used his nephew’s notes and managed to find a way.” Leo said, partly awed and partly disgusted.

“He has avoided death for too long.” Hades growled.

**“Percy,” Annabeth said uneasily...Underneath, bronze gears whirred. Wires glowed.**

“That’s amazing.” Beckendorf said. It might have been unnatural and wrong but there was no denying how incredible it was as well.

“Yeah.” Leo agreed.

**“That’s amazing!” Rachel said...Annabeth said. “That’s…not natural.”**

“Indeed it is not.” Athena stated gravely.

**“Oh, I assure you, my dear, it’s still me...I said. “Let him die.”**

“Oh yes, because that’s so much better.” Travis scoffed.

**Quintus gazed out the windows at the purple mountains...I preferred to come to my own conclusions.”**

“I wonder what Luke actually told him about why the Camp needed to be destroyed.” Chris frowned.

“Probably just that we oppose Kronos so need to die. And that killing us would weaken the gods.” Clarisse shrugged.

**“So you have talked to Luke.”...You can’t let Luke through the maze!”**

“I don’t think he can control it anymore.” Leo said. “He might be able to get around in it but something like that has probably taken on a life of it’s own by now.”

  
“That’s just great.” Jason sighed.

“A monstrous maze that has a mind of its own. Lovely.” Dakota grimaced.

**Daedalus set his sword on the workbench...“But how can you hide from Hades?” I asked.**

Hades’ face twisted in annoyance. “It is difficult but it can be done.” He admitted, looking as if such an admission left a bitter taste in his mouth.

**“I mean…Hades has the Furies.”**

“They do not usually hunt souls who evade death. That’s Thanatos’ job.” Nico explained. “And he can be tricked or eluded much easier than they can.”

“Plus the maze probably makes a pretty good hiding place. I expect the magic in it would help keep in hidden from gods.” Silena said.

“Indeed.” Aphrodite beamed proudly at her daughter.

**“They do not know everything,” he said...so he can punish me for my crimes.**

“But wouldn’t Daedalus be punished anyway for the death of his nephew?” Will asked.

“Most likely but his punishment would not be as harsh as what Minos likely has planned for him.” Nico said.

“I thought the judges only said which part of the Underworld people go to, not what punishment they recieve.” Will frowned in confusion.

“Minos has a lot of power in the Underworld, I expect he would have been able to organise something for Daedalus easily enough.” Nico shrugged. “Plus, in some cases the judges do have some input on punishment suggestions.”

“But wouldn’t Minos be punished if he abused his power as a judge of the dead?” Hazel frowned.

“He was chosen by Zeus. He was under Zeus’ protection and so, no, he most likely would not be punished as long as it remained a one time occurrence.” Hades explained to his daughter. “And even if he was punished, he would likely consider it a price worth paying to punish Daedalus.”

**After the daughters of Cocalus killed him...despite the horrible things Daedalus had done.**

“Well it  _ is _ impressive to have avoided Thanatos for two thousand years.” Beckendorf said. 

“And to be able to transfer his consciousness into an automaton is also super impressive even if it’s wrong.” Leo added.

**Just then a loud bark echoed from the corridor...“Of course it did, Percy. You have a good heart.**

“Yeah he has a good heart but that didn’t stop you spying on Camp.” Jason said unhappily.

**And I knew Mrs. O’Leary liked you. I wanted to help you. Perhaps I—I felt guilty, as well.”**

“That doesn’t sound good.” Piper frowned. “Has he already helped Luke?”

“Probably.” Reyna scowled.

**“Guilty about what?”...But you are several hours too late.”**

“Hours?” Beckendorf frowned. “It hasn’t...oh, they stopped to rest. Luke’s army must have overtaken you then.” 

“Unless Luke already had the string when they were in the arena.” Katie said.

“But how would they have gotten through Antaeus the first time?” Will wanted to know. “Don’t you have to go through the arena to get anywhere? Surely they would have had to go through it to get to the workshop and then again to get to Camp?”

“Who knows.” Nico shrugged. “Either way he has the string which isn’t good.”

**With a chill I realized why Luke...I’d taken care of that for him by killing Antaeus.**

“You didn’t have a choice.” Poseidon told his son firmly. The last thing they needed was Percy taking on even more misguided guilt.

“I know.” Percy smiled at him. The sea god let out a sigh of relief.

**“Kronos promised me freedom,” Quintus said. “Once Hades is overthrown, he will set me over the Underworld.**

“Nonsense. Father would not let anyone control the Underworld but himself.” Zeus scoffed.

  
“Or at the very least one of his most trusted advisors. Which certainly would not be Daedalus.” Hades added.

“Father didn’t trust anyone.” Poseidon pointed out. “He would keep all the power for himself.” 

“The point is Daedalus is a fool to believe him.” Demeter stepped in. “Let us keep reading.”

**I will reclaim my son Icarus...And I will no longer have to run from death.”**

“I can see why he would want that but he’s stupid to believe Kronos has any intention of following through on his promises.” Chris sighed.

**“That’s your brilliant idea?” Annabeth yelled...bring down the entire world so you can get what you want?”**

“Selfish doesn’t even cover that.” Will muttered. “Let the world burn just for a false promise.”

“Letting the world burn even if the promise was real is wrong.” Piper said.

“True.” Will agreed.

**“Your cause is doomed, my dear...You should have died two thousand years ago.”**

“Never meet your heroes.” Leo muttered, feeling pretty disappointed himself.

Annabeth found herself getting a sideways hug from Thalia who felt terrible for her friend. After everything that had happened her hero had betrayed them. While she knew he had redeemed himself eventually, it had to have stung Annabeth a lot.

**Instead of getting mad, Daedalus hung his head...Nico was pushed inside, his hands in chains.**

“What?” Hades asked suddenly.

“I was alright.” Nico assured him.

“At least they took you straight to Percy.” Will said, looking grim.

“Yeah because Nico was so thrilled about that.” Percy grinned.

“Hey, you know I actually was pleased to see you that time.” Nico protested.

“I know. I’m surprised he actually managed to convince you to go and help us.”

“I did tell you I never really hated you.” 

“I know.” Percy smiled at him. “We appreciate what you were trying to do.”

**Then Kelli and two Laistrygonians marched in...“This was not part of our agreement,” Daedalus said.**

“No but you’ve given them what they need now.” Athena sighed at her son’s naivety. It seemed that two thousand years had still not given him wisdom.

“Yeah, now they have no reason to honour the agreement.” Hermes agreed.

**“No indeed,” Kelli said...She ran a finger under Nico’s chin.**

“Minos will pay for this.” Hades growled angrily. Not only had the ghost king been using misleading Nico this whole time he had actually handed him over to Luke which meant Kronos knew his son was his son. Nico was now in more danger than ever.

**“He’ll be quite useful. And all Minos asked...He convinced me to go back into the maze.”**

“You went back in for Percy?” Reyna asked. She eyed the son of Hades with a newfound respect. He had gone back into the very dangerous Labyrinth to help a demigod he didn’t even like at the time.

“He did help me a lot.” Nico shrugged.

“You didn’t seem very grateful when you last saw him.” She said with a raised eyebrow.

“That didn’t mean I wanted him to die.” 

“Fair enough.”

**“You were trying to help us?”...“Percy,” Rachel whispered, “the wings. Do you think—”**

“Nice thinking.” Leo grinned. He wished he could have tried those wings himself. He didn’t like heights much but it would be worth it to use Daedalus’ famous wings.

**“Get them,” I said. “I’ll try to buy you some time.”...“Kill the inventor! Kill him!”**

“Wait but didn’t he say the Labyrinth was tied to his life force?” Leo frowned. “So what happens to it if he dies?” 

“Killing him might be a good idea. Kill Luke’s army while they are still in the Labyrinth.” Frank suggested.

“Yeah but they are still in the Labyrinth.” Hazel pointed out.

“They can use the wings.” He shrugged.

**Rachel grabbed the wings off the wall...green flames spreading quickly.**

“Now would be the time to hurry.” Apollo said. 

**“To me!” Minos cried. “Spirits of the dead!”...He’d somehow managed to remove his shackles.**

“How did you manage that?” Will asked, looking impressed.

“They weren’t very tight and I’m pretty skinny.” Nico shrugged like this was no big deal.

“Yeah. You need to eat more.” Will nodded. Nico didn’t like the glint in his eyes as he said this.

**“You do not control me, young fool,”...“You have no power over me.**

“Oh but he does.” Hades smirked.

**I am the lord of spirits! The ghost king!”**

**“No.” Nico drew his sword. “I am.”**

“Nico.” Hades’ smugness turned to worry. “Do you understand what taking that title entails?” 

“I didn’t then but I do now.” Nico nodded solemnly. “I don’t mind, father. The title  _ is _ mine.” 

“Very well.” The smile his father gave him was a proud one but still contained hints of his concern.

“Hey, the prophecy.” Hazel recalled. “Rise or fall by the ghost king’s hand. That’s Nico.”

“Yep. Couldn’t have done it without him.” Percy grinned as Nico blushed. “It was a good job you took that title.” He added. He was positive that had Minos remained the ghost king, the Camp would have fallen.

**He stabbed his black blade into the floor...spirits were sucked into the void with a horrible wail.**

“Cool.” Will said with a grin. “Nice work.”

**The bad news: the fight was still going on all around us, and I let myself get distracted.**

“Percy.” Apollo groaned.

“I know, I know.” Percy sighed.

**Kelli pounced on me so fast I had no time...Kelli dissolved into yellow vapor.**

“Yes!” All of the demigods, Rachel and Apollo all cheered.

  
“About time.” Apollo said. “I hope she stays in Tartarus for a long time.”

“Thank the gods for Annabeth.” Percy grinned. Annabeth smiled back at him.

“Maybe that’ll teach you not to get distracted.” She smirked.

“Probably not.” He laughed. “I am a slow learner.”

**Annabeth helped me up. I still felt dizzy...“We have to help Daedalus!” I said.**

“Just go.” Poseidon told his son.

“Quickly.” Triton added.

**“No time,” Rachel said. “Too many coming!”...“I won’t leave Mrs. O’Leary!” he said. “Go!”**

“She can just shadow travel out though.” Nico frowned. “Surely he would know that.”

**There was no time to argue...four of us jumped out the window into open sky.**

“Gods.” Thalia breathed. “So glad I was not with you on this one.”

“Chapter’s done.” Nico announced.

“I shall read.” Athena stated. She wished to know the fate of her son, no matter the terrible things he had done.


	17. I Open a Coffin

Annabeth went pale as she grimaced.

“Why would you open a coffin?” Triton asked his brother warily.

“To see what was inside.” Percy replied in a fake cheerful tone that nobody bought even for a second. Poseidon could only think of one coffin that would have been of any interest to his son and the idea of Percy opening his father’s sarcophagus was enough to steal his breath. He wrapped an arm around Percy’s shoulders and held tight.

“That sounds like a terrible idea.” Leo said. “Coffins should definitely be left alone.”

“Agreed.” Beckendorf nodded.

**Jumping out a window five hundred feet aboveground is not usually my idea of fun.**

“Er...aren’t you not allowed to fly.” Will asked.

“I should really hope not.” Apollo said at the same time.

“Not usually. Apparently Zeus decided not to smite me this time.” Percy shrugged. “Maybe I was flying low enough.”

“Or your dad had something to do with it.” Beckendorf suggested.

“I doubt it. Dad was pretty busy fighting a war.”

“I’d never be too busy to stop Zeus smiting you.” Poseidon promised.

“Thanks.” Percy grinned.

**Especially when I’m wearing bronze wings and flapping my arms like a duck.**

A few people sniggered at the mental image.

**I plummeted toward the valley and the red rocks...The feeling was unbelievable.**

“You really are crazy.” Thalia said. It then struck her how bizarre it was that a son of Poseidon enjoyed flying more than a daughter of Zeus. They really were a messed up group. It did sort of bother her to hear that Percy actually enjoyed flying, especially given that he wasn’t even on a Pegasus to make it neutral territory. She couldn’t imagine ever loving swimming more than Percy. It left her feeling quite unsettled and more than a little jealous.

**After getting the hang of it, I felt like the wings...billowed from the windows of Daedalus’s workshop.**

“Not a good sign.” Leo winced.

“Greek fire will do that.” Beckendorf said grimly. All of the Greek campers nodded.

**“Land!” Annabeth yelled...“I don’t want to find out!” Annabeth said.**

“Yeah. Probably best not too.” Jason nodded.

**We swooped down toward the Garden of the Gods...already melting, and we were shedding bronze feathers.**

“Definitely not good.” Will said.

“Good choice to land.” Apollo agreed.

“But how are you going to get to Camp?” Reyna asked. “You’ll never get there in time.”

“They have to go back through the Labyrinth.” Hermes said, looking grim. “It’s the only way to get there in time.”

“Not if they get lost. Or run into trouble which is pretty likely with Percy around.” Frank pointed out.

“There isn’t another option.” Thalia shrugged.

**It seemed a shame, but we couldn’t fix them...stuffed the wings in trash bins outside the cafeteria.**

Leo and Beckendorf cringed at hearing the fate of the wings. Such a marvellous invention deserved a better end than that. Not to mention they would probably have been able to fix them at Camp and they might have come in useful.

**I used the tourist binocular camera to look up...Just the side of a hill.**

“He did say his workshop moved around a lot.” Connor said.

“Or the Labyrinth is gone.” Frank suggested hopefully.

“Na, that would be too easy.” Hazel said. “It’s never that easy when Percy’s involved.”

**“The workshop moved,” Annabeth guessed...Maybe that will stop Luke’s invasion.”**

“No. Grover and Tyson were still down there and Percy would know if Grover had died.” Dionysus pointed out. Percy gaped at the god, shocked he had used his correct name. Clearly having his kids around was having a positive effect on the wine god.

**I thought about Grover and Tyson...“No,” Nico said. “He isn’t dead.”**

“I take it knowing that is a son of Hades thing?” Will asked.

“Yeah.” Nico grimaced. While the ability could be very useful it also sucked sometimes. Knowing when people died was also a burden.

**“How can you be sure?” I asked...like a buzzing in my ears.”**

“Every time someone dies?” Silena asked. “That must be all the time.” 

“Pretty much.” Nico nodded. “But I can tune it out most of the time these days. Half Bloods are harder to ignore than regular humans though.” He explained.

**“What about Tyson and Grover, then?”...They don’t have mortal souls.”**

“But you can tell when they die?” Hazel asked curiously.

“Only if I was actively checking on them.” Nico said. “Even then, I might miss it. I haven’t exactly practised a lot listening for monster deaths.”

**“We have to get into town,” Annabeth decided...I shuddered. “I don’t fly.”**

“You kinda just did.” Triton laughed.

“It’s not quite the same and you know it.” Percy rolled his eyes.

“There’s no time anyway. A plane would take too long.” Poseidon cut in before they could continue.

**“But you just did.”...we would find Grover and Tyson along the way.**

Grover and Tyson both smiled gratefully at him.

**“So we need a car to take us into the city,” Annabeth said...“I’ll take care of it.”**

“How are you going to do that?” Reyna wondered.

“You’re about to find out.” Rachel grimaced.

**“How?” Annabeth asked...send an Iris-message to camp.”**

“Good idea.” Hermes nodded. The gods all shifted nervously. With Daedalus having given the string to Kronos’ army it seemed an attack on Camp was inevitable. All those with children at the Camp were growing increasingly nervous about what they might hear.

**“I’ll go with you,” Nico said. “I’m hungry.”**

**“I’ll stick with Rachel, then,” I said.**

“Good idea. No one should go off alone.” Hades nodded. He hated to think about the danger Nico was now in with Kronos knowing of his existence. Just the thought of it made him want to completely destroy Minos. He could not wait until he got back to the Underworld where he could tell the arrogant ghost he was no longer protected by Zeus.

**“Meet you guys in the parking lot.”...I followed her down to the parking lot anyway.**

“Sorry.” Rachel said.

“It’s ok. I know why you didn’t want me coming with you.” Percy smiled at her.

**She headed toward a big black car...Yes, ma’am. Whatever you want.**

“Woah. That’s wicked.” Connor looked at Rachel with new appreciation.

“No.” Chiron stated.

“What?” Travis tried to look innocent.

“Whatever you two have planned, leave poor Miss Dare out of it.” The Centaur looked at them sternly.

“Awww.” They both pouted.

**I couldn’t figure out why he was acting so flustered...Emergency. I’ve ordered another car for you.”**

“You count as an emergency?” Will asked in a teasing tone.

“Maybe she told him she had Percy Jackson with her.” Nico smirked.

“Hey!” Percy protested while Rachel laughed. Then she glanced anxiously towards Artemis who was probably not going to be happy when she learned about her father.

**“Come on,” Rachel said...We started pigging out.**

“That was awesome.” Percy grinned.

“Of course you would think the food was the best part.” Triton laughed at his brother fondly.

“Hey, demigods don’t exactly get to eat regular meals on quests. We take what we can get.” Percy shrugged.

“Probably unhealthy snacks.” Demeter grumbled. Persephone rolled her eyes at her mother.

**“Where to, Miss Dare?” the driver asked...I looked at Rachel. “Do you know this guy?”**

“But you know his name?” Beckendorf frowned.

“He had a name tag.” Rachel said, not wanting to elaborate further.

**“No.”...random chauffeur and immediately get a ride.**

“Just be glad. You guys probably didn’t have the money for a taxi.” Silena said.

“No. We didn’t.” Annabeth agreed grimly. Yet another time Rachel had saved the day. 

**After about an hour we decided to head...“I saw something, I think. Get off here.”**

“I can’t believe you managed to spot that from where we were.” Percy told her.

“It was pretty impressive.” Nico agreed.

“Being clear sighted helped.” Rachel waved away their praise though she had gone a little red.

**The driver swerved across traffic and took the exit...“I mean…I can see it, okay?”**

“It was definitely weird being able to see things you guys couldn’t.” Rachel admitted. “I was used to it with regular people but you guys knew about this world that I could see and I still saw stuff you didn’t.”

“It was weird for us too.” Percy assured her.

**She thanked the driver and we all got out...For better or worse, we were back in the Labyrinth.**

“Wonderful.” Apollo groaned.

“Not the word I would use.” Poseidon grumbled.

“What about Rachel though?” Reyna suddenly asked.

“What do you mean?” Katie frowned.

“Well they need her to guide them through the Labyrinth to Camp but mortals aren’t allowed inside the Camp. You can’t expect Rachel to find her way back home through the Labyrinth alone.” Reyna pointed out.

“The entrance from the Labyrinth is within the Camp’s boundaries so Rachel could use it to get into Camp.” Annabeth explained. She didn’t bother adding that it hadn’t been necessary in the end. “The same way the monsters could get in.” She added grimly.

**The dirt tunnels turned to stone...I hung back and walked next to Nico in uncomfortable silence.**

“Not another architecture nut.” Thalia groaned playfully. Annabeth hit her arm.

“I don’t know anywhere near as much about it as Annabeth but I find it fascinating.” Rachel admitted. “Most from an art perspective though.”

**“Thanks for coming after us,” I told him at last...Nobody should be able to avoid death that long. It’s not natural.”**

Hades and Persephone both nodded at this.

**“That’s what you were after all along,” I said...Knowing that I’ll never be accepted by the living.**

“Of course you could be accepted.” Will frowned. “All of us here accept you.” 

“Only because we’ve been reading together for ages.” Nico argued.

“No. I bet pretty much everyone in this room wouldn’t have had an issue with you even before this. All of the Campers anyway.” Will told him. “So now you have no excuse not to stay at Camp.”

“And stay in the Hermes cabin?”

“I told you, we’ll work on getting Zeus to allow us to make a cabin for your dad.” Will promised. “You can make it as dark and creepy as you like.” He teased. Nico glared but there was no heat in it.

**Only the dead respect me, and they only do that...it was kind of impressive, but it made me uncomfortable too.**

Nico frowned. He hadn’t realised that even Percy was uncomfortable with his powers. He had thought it was the situation that had made him uncomfortable.

“Coming from the guy who can erupt volcanoes.” Nico pointed out. Percy grinned sheepishly while the gods shifted anxiously at the reminder.

“Well, when you put it like that…” Percy laughed nervously. “Besides, I think you’d be welcome at Camp nowadays anyway.” Nico nodded.

“What’s the deal with being the ghost king?” Frank asked.

“To Minos it was simply a title as he was a ghost and a king.” Hades explained. “However the true Ghost King is a position my children can take on giving them control over ghosts. More than they have from simply being my children. It means they are in charge of the ghosts. All ghosts must respond to his command, with a couple of exceptions, and they cannot refuse a summons from him. But it also means they are responsible should a ghost escape the Underworld for some reason or for ghosts like Minos who wreak havoc by temporarily appearing in the world and misguiding people. It requires a strong will and great discipline to keep the ghosts under control and in check. None of my children have claimed the title in centuries, which is why Minos used it despite not being able to have the job due to being Zeus’ child.” He concluded with a mixture of worry and pride.

“That’s a lot of responsibility.” Will frowned at Nico.

“I enjoy it.” Nico shrugged. Hades raised an eyebrow. That was unusual. Not many of his children had taken the title but those that did always hated it almost immediately. They only considered the power of such a title and not the actual work involved. Nico had taken it on without really realising any of what it meant and he still enjoyed the job. Still, from what he had seen so far he had faith Nico could do the job well.

**Before I could figure out what to tell him...“No,” Rachel said nervously. “Not at all.”**

“So why do I get the feeling you’re going down that tunnel anyway?” Apollo sighed.

“Because you know Percy.” Grover said.

**“Why are we stopping then?” I asked...Atlas on top of Mount Tamalpais, the air had smelled like that.**

“Ok, definitely don’t go down that tunnel.” Poseidon told his son.

“Can’t do much about it now, dad.” Percy pointed out.

“Why would you go down a tunnel that leads to mount Othrys?” Hades asked his nephew, looking as if he thought him crazy. Which he did.

**“There’s something evil down that tunnel,” Rachel said...which made me feel a whole lot better.**

“Oh good. The smell of evil, great power and death. Exactly why do you want to go down there?” Reyna asked.

“Because Luke might be down there.” Annabeth said.

**Annabeth and I exchanged glances...“Percy, no.”**

“I’m with Annabeth.” Thalia said.

“I think everyone agrees with Annabeth except Percy.” Rachel grimaced.

“So you’re doing it Percy’s way.” Grover laughed. 

“He’s stubborn.” Annabeth shrugged.

“So are you.” Thalia pointed out.

“Not as much as he is.” 

“Oh really?”

“Yes.”

“You’re as bad as each other.” Grover put in, stopping the argument.

**“Luke could be right here,” I said...You stay here and guard them.”**

“Good point.” Hades nodded. He didn’t want his son anywhere close to his father. Just being at the end of the tunnel was too close as far as he was concerned.

**What I didn’t say: I was also worried about Annabeth. I didn’t trust what she would do if she saw Luke again.**

“What?” Annabeth looked at him angrily.

“Six months before this he managed to manipulate you into holding the entire damn sky for him.” Percy pointed out. “Plus he had already tried to talk to you once while he ordered us killed. I didn’t want to take the chance of you going off with him and getting yourself killed.”

“I wouldn’t…” Annabeth began hotly.

“You would.” Thalia said quietly. “I know because I’d probably do the same thing if I thought I had a chance of saving him. But Percy is right. It’s safer if you don’t go near him.” 

**He had fooled her and manipulated her too many times before.**

Annabeth glared at the floor angrily.

**“Percy, don’t,” Rachel said...“I won’t do anything stupid.”**

“Judging by the chapter title I wouldn’t bet on that.” Apollo muttered. Poseidon shuddered a little and clutched his son a little tighter.

**Annabeth took her Yankees cap out of her pocket...“At least we salvaged the blade,”**

“Shame that.” Hades muttered.

“It would take more than one eruption to destroy that blade.” Zeus stated.

**one said. “The master will still reward us.”...I’d saved his sorry life in the arena.**

“Ran straight back to Kronos’ army apparently.” Frank frowned. “They made him fight for his life for entertainment and he went  _ back _ ?” 

“He’s crazy.” Hazel shook her head in disbelief.

“I’m surprised they didn’t kill him for running off with you guys.” Beckendorf said.

“No. He was too useful to them.” Percy said bitterly.

**I crept toward the end of the tunnel...They shouldn’t be able to see me.**

“No reason not to be cautious.” Chris stated.

“Plus, they can still hear you.” Clarisse added.

**A blast of cold air hit me as I emerged...blade will sever your soul from your body.”**

“Oh great. No longer just a manifestation then.” Hades scowled.

**Ethan swallowed nervously...mortals could miss the fact that it was here.**

“Lots of Mist.” Annabeth said.

“The same way they don’t see Olympus over New York.” Silena added.

**But then again, everything below the summit...Now the weapon was re-forged.**

Poseidon and Apollo both tensed up. Percy’s last encounter with that blade and not gone well. A repeat would kill him.

**“We must sanctify it in blood,” the telekhine said...This might be my only chance.**

“No. Just leave.” Triton moaned. “You’ll get yourself killed.”

“I’m right here and I was fine.” Percy reminded him.

**I dashed through a dark foyer and into the main hall...It was too easy, but I approached the dais.**

“Too easy usually means trap.” Jason pointed out.

“Or it doesn’t need guards.” Leo said ominously.

**The sarcophagus was just like I remembered...pictures of the gods being trodden under chariots,**

All of the gods made affronted noises at this.

**temples and famous world landmarks being smashed and burned...Why was he silent now?**

“No good reason.” Apollo muttered anxiously.

**He’d been shred into a thousand pieces...and it fell to the floor with a huge WHOOOOM!**

“Oh great. Now you’ve alerted the telkhines you’re there.” Beckendorf groaned.

**I lifted my sword, ready to strike...The body in the coffin was Luke’s.**

“No.” Hermes’ voice came out as a hoarse whisper. He couldn’t breathe. There was only one reason Luke would be in Kronos’ sarcophagus and it was something Hermes had been dreading. But dreading it and hearing it confirmed were very different things. The god felt as if his own heart had been ripped out and trampled beyond repair. His son. How had his son fallen so far that he would agree to this? His poor Luke. A broken sob escaped him before a hand gripped his shoulder.

“Dad?” Chris’ voice was shaky as Hermes looked up at his son with blurry vision. He had one arm around Clarisse, holding on as if she were a lifeline but his other hand was gripping Hermes’ shoulder.

“He...Luke...my boy.” Hermes couldn’t form sentences. He wasn’t even sure what he wanted to say. Nothing anyone said could make this better.

“We know.” Travis said, his own voice as grim as anyone had ever heard it. “Trust us, we know.” Connor moved to the floor in front of his dad and Nico and Will switched places with Travis and Katie so Hermes could reach all of his children to embrace them tightly. The group clung to each other.

Athena continued reading, frequently casting concerned looks at her half brother.

**I should have stabbed him right then.**

Hermes made a wounded sound as if Percy had suggested stabbing  _ him _ .

**I should’ve brought the point of Riptide...and why he looked so very, very dead.**

Another pitiful sound came out of the god of thieves. Hermes felt even worse, something he hadn’t thought possible, because he wished that  _ was _ the case. He wished his son was  _ dead _ over the fate that was coming and that thought burned. It made him feel so guilty for ever wanting one of his children to be dead but this...this was a fate far worse than death.

Chris was pretty sure he could hear his ribs creaking his father was squeezing him so tightly but he could care less. He was also thinking along the lines that it would be better if Luke  _ had _ died but he felt a lot less guilty about it than his father. Any guilt he felt vanished as he pictured the faces of all the demigods who had died at Luke’s own hand, let alone his army’s.

Zeus opened his mouth, a disdainful sneer on his face but all of the Greek campers, except the Hermes kids, glared at him so forcefully he shut it again. Even his own daughter was looking at him with a very clear threat in her eyes that she would make his life very uncomfortable should he dare to say anything. It occured to him just how soft these books were making him if he were stopped by some glares from a few demigods but without his powers he felt strangely vulnerable. Plus he didn’t want to undo all the progress he had made with his daughter.

**Then the voices of the telekhines were right behind me...Nothing happened in the coffin.**

“Let’s keep it that way.” Reyna muttered without any actual hope.

**“You fool,” the other telekhine muttered...into the room and took off the cap. “Ethan, don’t!”**

“Definitely stupid!” Apollo yelped. “Why would you do that?”

“I wanted to convince Ethan not to do it.” Percy sighed.

**“Trespasser!” The telekhines bared their seal teeth...I’m the child of Nemesis, Goddess of Revenge.**

“You hear that, Grover. Nemesis is a goddess.” Percy teased, trying to break the suffocating tension. A few people let out quiet chuckles. Some of the gods let out sighs of relief that he was not a child of theirs. They didn’t want to hear their child pledging to serve Kronos.

“Yeah, yeah.” The Satyr glared at him. “It was one mistake. A simple slip of the tongue.”

“I’m sure she’d see it that way.” Grover went pale at that. 

“You’ve said far worse.” He retorted.

“True.” Percy grinned.

**And this is what I was made to do.”...I will serve Kronos.”**

“Stupid child.” Hera snapped.

**The building rumbled...the same color as the coffin.**

Hermes choked at this. Luke was gone. His son was lost. All this time some part of him had hoped that Annabeth, or anyone, would be able to talk some sense into his son and bring him back. Now all hope was lost. He buried his face in Travis’ hair and another sob burst forth. Then another. Some part of his brain realised his shirt was getting wet as he was not the only one crying.

Apollo watched his best friend quietly break down and felt completely helpless. There was nothing he could do to make this better and Hermes needed his kids far more than his half brother at the moment. That didn’t mean he had to like it. Instead he pulled Percy closer to him simply to keep himself in place. Percy just gave him an understanding smile and settled himself against Apollo’s chest.

**The hole in his chest was gone...“This body has been well prepared.”**

Chris made an angry sound and Clarisse took his hand, squeezing it gently. Most of him was still wrapped in an embrace by his father but she wanted him to know she was still here for him too.

**His voice was like a razor blade running...“His jealously and hatred have been powerful tools.**

Percy absently wondered why Luke had been jealous of him. 

**It has kept him obedient. For that I thank you.”...skin deflected the blow like he was made of pure steel.**

“He has bathed in the river Styx.” Hades said gravely. “It is the only way the body would be able to hold father’s spirit.” He shot an apologetic look at his nephew. Hermes shuddered slightly wishing he could just cover his ears and shut it all out. The only thing that was keeping him going was the mantra in his head repeating that they could fix this. He would do whatever it took to stop his son from going down this route. If only he knew what he had done to make Luke hate him so much.

“That is grim news.” Zeus stated, looking unhappy. “He was difficult to destroy without that advantage.”

“We will need to find his weakness.” Apollo said uneasily as he looked down at Percy. He knew it was likely to be Percy who had to find the weakness and thought of Percy fighting Kronos in physical form made him want to take Percy far, far away and hide him. He hoped these books would give them the answers they needed.

**He looked at me with amusement...he feared you, Percy Jackson. I do not.”**

“Oh I think you do.” Nico smirked.

“Why would a Titan lord fear a demigod?” Octavian asked scornfully.

“Because Percy is damn scary.” Will said.

“Plus he is the child of the prophecy set to defeat Kronos.” Beckendorf added. Percy went red. He hated that stupid prophecy. He didn’t want the fate of the world to lie with him but there was no way he’d make anyone else take that fate either.

“Stupid Greeks and their stupid oracle.” Octavian muttered jealously but Reyna elbowed him until he was quiet.

**That’s when I ran. There wasn’t even any thought to it...Nope, I simply ran.**

“Finally some sense.” Poseidon said.

“About time you found that self preservation instinct.” Triton heaved a sigh of relief.

“I’m surprised to find you do actually have one.” Thalia muttered.

“It’s buried pretty deep down.” Percy grinned.

**But my feet felt like lead...No amount of celestial bronze.**

“True but any hit to his weak spot would be enough.” Athena said.

**He was ten feet away when I heard, “PERCY!”...blue plastic hairbrush hit Kronos in the eye.**

There was silence in the room as everyone turned to look at Rachel in shock. She went bright red under the scrutiny.

“Did she just..?” Dakota breathed.

“I think she did.” Pollux whispered back.

“A mortal girl hit the Titan lord in the face with a hairbrush.” Katie said, staring at Rachel in awe.

“Go Rachel!” Reyna cheered. 

“That’s so cool.” Connor said, giving her a smile that was still a little watery but it was sincere. 

“Nice shot.” Apollo said approvingly. “Couldn’t have aimed better myself.”

“It was all I had on me.” Rachel explained, a little defensively. At this it was like a dam burst and everyone started laughing. 

“You...you’re my h...hero.” Leo spluttered through his laughter.

“I think she’s everyone’s hero.” Piper corrected, still giggling herself.

“You have great spirit.” Artemis looked impressed. The girl had seemed interested in joining the Hunt earlier and Artemis hoped she still was. Rachel would fit in very nicely. 

All the other gods were still gaping. They would never have thought a mere mortal would have such bravery in the face of the king of the Titans. Yes she had displayed bravery several times before such as when she had gone into the Labyrinth but this was a different level altogether. There was certainly something special about her and it gave most of them pause. Especially the ones who thought of mortals as nothing more than ants.

“Please keep reading.” Rachel begged. Athena finally took pity on the girl and returned her attention to the book.

**“Ow!” he yelled. For a moment it was only Luke’s voice, full of surprise and pain.**

Hermes’ head whipped up so fast that those near him could hear his neck crack. So Luke was still in there. Kronos had not destroyed him or subdued him completely. Maybe there was a slim chance his son could still be saved. Oh, Hermes knew that saving Luke would almost certainly require killing him but death was better than this. Maybe there was a chance he would be redeemed. 

**My limbs were freed and I ran straight into Rachel...coming back into control. “AFTER THEM!”**

Hermes sunk back down but feeling a little less like he was going to drown in despair. It hadn’t been much but there  _ was  _ still hope.

**“No!” Nico yelled. He clapped his hands together...Dust billowed everywhere.**

“Nice work.” Will said.

“I’m just glad it did work.” Nico admitted. He’d never tried to move that much rock before unless he was creating an entrance to the Underworld like he had accidentally done at Camp.

**We plunged into the Labyrinth and kept running, the howl of the Titan lord shaking the entire world behind us.**

“The chapter is done.” Athena announced.

“I think we should take a quick break.” Chiron suggested.

“No.” Hermes said firmly. “Let’s just keep going.”

“Are you sure?” Chris asked his dad. Hermes nodded determinedly. A five minute break wasn’t going to make him feel any better. 

Percy watched, wondering if he should give Hermes a heads up about what happened to Pan. It was going to be another painful blow to the god, especially coming so soon after hearing about Luke. Before he could make up his mind Hephaestus had taken the book from Athena and was about to start reading.


	18. The Lost God Speaks

Hermes perked up once more at this. They finally found his son! Finally some good news. He really needed some at the moment. Some part of his brain noted that the Satyr didn’t look as happy as he should if Pan had been found but he ignored it.

**We ran until we were exhausted...feeling that my limbs were slowly turning to stone.**

Hermes groaned as his momentary lift in mood lasted only a few sentences.

**“I can’t go any farther,” Rachel gasped...been crying the entire time we’d been running.**

Now Annabeth was clinging onto Thalia, both of them had silent tears running down their cheeks. 

**Now she collapsed and put her head...“You saved our lives,” I said.**

“Yeah, thanks for that.” Rachel said.

“Anytime.” Nico smiled. 

**Nico wiped the dust off his face...We needed to help you or you’d mess things up.”**

“Thanks guys.” Percy snorted.

“You did go and open Kronos’ sarcophagus.” Apollo reminded him.

“And, while I get why you wanted to try and stop Ethan, you did get yourself caught and you needed their help.” Triton added.

“Not to mention the last time Annabeth left you alone you made a volcano erupt.” Beckendorf laughed. Percy grimaced. He really wished people would stop bringing that up.

“So, all in all, they probably had a point.” Nico smirked.

“Oh shut up.” Percy sent him a fake glare.

**“Nice that they trust me so much,”...a child of the Underworld.”**

“Minos probably told them already.” Piper pointed out.

“Yeah, I guess I forgot about that.” Percy shrugged.

“A lot has happened since then and it wasn’t even that long ago.” Jason said.

**Nico frowned. “Big deal.”**

“It  _ is _ a big deal.” Hades said sharply.

**I let it drop. I figured he was just trying to hide how scared he was, and I couldn’t blame him.**

Will nodded while Nico glared at Percy for being able to read him so well.

**Annabeth lifted her head...What did they do to him?”**

“He did it to himself.” Clarisse scoffed quietly.

**I told her what I’d seen in the coffin...“I’m sorry, Annabeth. But Luke is gone.”**

“Not completely.” Hermes argued, his voice even more broken and desperate than before. “He’s still in there.”

“The boy is as good as dead.” Zeus told his son firmly but not unkindly.

“Even if he is still in there, there is no way to get father out of him without killing the boy.” Hades agreed, giving Hermes a sympathetic look. Hermes shook his head in denial.

“There is always a way. We’ve heard of plenty of things during these books that should have been impossible.” He turned to face Percy who looked mildly alarmed.

“Lord Hermes...I…” There was nothing he could say. He would have no idea how to even begin getting a Titan out of someone.

“Hermes, that’s beyond even our power, let alone a demigod’s.” Apollo told his friend gently. “You know that as well as I do.” Finally Hermes slumped back in his seat, a fresh wave of tears streaming down his face.

**“No!” she insisted. “You saw when Rachel hit him.”...Lord of the Titans in the eye with a blue plastic hairbrush.”**

“Best moment ever.” Leo grinned widely.

“I so wish I could have seen that.” Beckendorf said.

“No. You don’t.” Percy assured him. “It might have been totally epic but it’s not worth being that close to Kronos.”

“Fair point.” Will nodded.

**Rachel looked embarrassed. “It was the only thing I had.”**

“Hey, I wasn’t complaining.” Percy grinned. “Just impressed.”

**“But you saw,” Annabeth insisted...“You want him to be evil, is that it?” Annabeth yelled.**

“Of course I don’t  _ want _ him to be evil, Annabeth, he  _ is _ evil.” Percy glared at her. “I’d much rather Kronos didn’t have a body at all, Luke’s or anyone else’s.”

“Luke  _ isn’t _ evil.” Annabeth shot back.

“Oh no, it’s totally good people who serve as a Titan lord’s right hand man and then agree to be a host body for him.” Percy rolled his eyes.

“If he hadn’t agreed they would have killed him.”

“Better dead than that.” She shot him a vicious glare for that remark but Grover cut in before she could reply.

“Enough you two. Let’s just keep reading.” He looked between them until they both nodded.

**“You didn’t know him before, Percy. I did!”...If it wasn’t for you…”**

“Hey now. Rachel didn’t do anything wrong.” Reyna put in.

“I know.” Annabeth said quietly. “I just wanted someone to blame and she was an easy target. Sorry.” 

“It’s fine. I get it.” Rachel waved away the apology. While it had annoyed her at the time, having heard the whole story she understood exactly why Annabeth had been so distraught.

**Whatever she was going to say, her voice broke...And the end of the world was probably close at hand.**

“Would you look at that. We’re still standing almost a year later.” Katie said.

“Yeah because the world won’t end until Percy turns sixteen.” Will pointed out. Then he pulled a face as he said Percy’s age and realised he was dating his dad. He knew the godly side of the family was messed up but that really did take the cake. 

“So glad you have faith in me.” Percy told him dryly.

“I do!” Will protested, momentary disgust aside. “I just meant…”

“I know what you meant.” Percy grinned.

“Git.” Will grinned tentatively back.

**“We have to keep moving,” Nico said...“Yeah, well. I didn’t want you to die.”**

“I’d rather you didn’t die either.” Percy told her casually. 

“I’m glad.”

**She blushed. “I mean…just because, you know. You owe me too many favors.**

“Yeah, I do owe you quite a few.” Percy nodded. Apollo grimaced slightly but resisted saying anything. 

“I’ll collect eventually.” She promised. 

“Best do it soon.” Percy muttered.

“No. I’ll take my time and you just can’t die until then.” She said.

“Alright.” He agreed with a laugh.

**How am I going to collect if you die?”...the one Grover always wore.**

“I’m glad you found my cap.” Grover said. “I was sad when it went missing.”

**My hands shook as I picked up the cap...“They went that way. It must have been recently.”**

“Your Camp is about to be attacked.” Frank pointed out.

“Yeah but Grover is my best friend.” Percy shrugged. “We’d warned the camp. Besides it was a good thing we found Grover.”

**“What about Camp Half-Blood?” Nico said...we were slipping and sliding rather than walking.**

“I’m honestly surprised I didn’t fall and break something.” Rachel commented.

“Me too.” Nico added. 

“I did have to catch you several times.” Percy smirked at him.

“It was twice!” Nico protested.

**Finally we got to the bottom of a slope...Grover’s eyes were closed. He wasn’t moving.**

“Really wish he would find other ways to communicate instead of making you collapse all the time.” Percy muttered to Grover.

“Me too.” Grover agreed, though he would rather have Pan alive and communicating in any way he wanted.

**“Tyson!” I yelled...“Large snake. Large dogs. Men with swords.**

“I hated that snake.” Grover shuddered.

“Mean snake was the worst.” Tyson nodded.

**But then…we got close to here...Then hit his head on rocks.”**

“It would help in finding Pan if you didn’t fall unconscious each time.” Frank noted, not having heard Percy’s comment.

“I think the rocks did more damage that time than being close to Pan.” Will said.

“Yep.” Grover nodded. That had definitely hurt.

**I knelt next to him. The only other time I’d seen Grover...splashed icy cold river water in his face.**

“Thanks.” Grover muttered sarcastically.

“You’re welcome.” Annabeth told him, smiling sweetly. The effect was slightly ruined by the red splotches on her face and puffy eyes but her attempt made Grover grin back.

**“Splurg!” His eyelids fluttered. “Percy? Annabeth?...The presence was too much for you.”**

Hermes was practically bouncing up and down in his seat. Chris and Travis tried to keep him from actually falling onto the floor.

“Dad…” Connor sighed.

“Sorry.” Hermes said but he was grinning widely.

“No, dad. Don’t get too excited.” Travis told him quietly.

“What do you mean?” Hermes frowned at his son.

“Grover found Pan but...he...it wasn’t…” Connor couldn’t continue. He didn’t want to break his dad’s heart again but they knew Pan had faded and he also couldn’t stand to see his dad getting his hopes up only to be crushed.

“No.” Hermes shook his head in denial. 

“Pan faded, dad.” Travis just went ahead and said it, albeit quietly. “He’d been planning it for centuries, he just wanted to find a worthy Satyr to succeed him, I guess.”

“No. Pan wouldn’t. He would have come and…” Hermes angrily wiped the new tears from his cheeks. He was sick of crying and he was sick of getting yet more bad news. Was he really that bad of a father? Apparently even his immortal children didn’t bother saying goodbye before fading away forever. Pan hadn’t said goodbye before he disappeared, and now he found that he had faded away after speaking to a Satyr and not his own father. Or even his best friend. It seemed unlikely Pan had even spoken to Dionysus either. Still, the god wasn’t sure how he had any heart left to keep breaking. For now all he could do was pull his children closer and try to hold himself together.

**“I—I remember. Pan.”...Annabeth’s nostrils flare like she was going to blow fire.**

“You know you’ll always be Tyson’s favourite.” Percy assured her. “Other than me of course.”

“Naturally.” She smiled.

**“Anyway,” I said. “Come on, Grover...I willed myself to stay dry,**

“I was very jealous of that.” Rachel noted.

“I would have helped you if I could.” Percy said.

“I know.” She smiled.

“Once we get you trained up a bit you might be able to protect other people.” Poseidon told his son. “Probably only one at a time.”

“That would be great.” Percy grinned.

**which is a handy little ability...“That would explain last winter.”**

“Good job you went through New Mexico then.” Katie said.

**I nodded. Grover’s swooning episode had happened...I could feel myself growing stronger,**

“Did you feel that?” Percy asked Annabeth and Rachel.

“Yeah. Not as strongly as it seems you felt it but I definitely felt better and stronger.” Annabeth nodded.

**like one of those plants in a time-lapse video...sparkling like a galaxy of stars.**

“It sounds amazing.” Katie breathed.

“I wish I could have seen that.” Silena agreed.

**In the center of the cave stood a Roman-style bed...was a wooly mammoth.**

Artemis smiled slightly. She might not have been particularly close to Pan but she appreciated his status as Lord of the Wild. And it was nice to see that some of the animals that humans had driven to extinction, surviving.

**On the bed lay an old satyr. He watched us...Even the goat fur on his legs was frosted with gray.**

Hermes’ heart ached at the description of his son. He hadn’t been grey at all when he had last seen him.

Dionysus frowned. He didn’t recall Pan having grey hair. In fact, gods didn’t get grey hair unless they wanted to. Or unless their realm was threatened. The mortals must have destroyed his friend’s realm so thoroughly it caused him to look like that. He felt a spike of hatred for mortals. 

**His horns were enormous— glossy brown and curved...“I…got lost,” Grover apologized.**

“That’s one way of putting it.” Nico laughed.

“Well, it would be hard to find him without getting lost a few times. Who would search for a Lord of the Wild in some underground caves in New Mexico?” Katie asked.

“No one apparently. Grover only found it because of the Labyrinth.” Will pointed out.

**Pan laughed. It was a wonderful sound, like the first breeze of springtime, filling the whole cavern with hope.**

The gods all sighed. They might not all have been as close with him as Dionysus but they had missed his presence.

**The tiger-wolf sighed and rested his head...I could swear it was humming “It’s a Small World.”**

A few people snickered.

**Still, Pan looked tired. His whole form shimmered as if he were made of Mist.**

Hermes and Dionysus frowned. The wine god took this as further confirmation that his friend was suffering from the destruction of his realm. It made him both sad and angry at the same time.

**I noticed my other friends were kneeling...“It’s better than any building ever designed.”**

“Wow. That’s high praise from Annabeth.” Thalia teased.

“It was fantastic.” Annabeth said.

“It sounds like it.” Katie nodded.

**“I am glad you like it, dear,” Pan said...They’ll be overjoyed! You can save the wild!”**

Hermes nodded. Connor and Travis exchanged concerned looks.

**Pan placed his hand on Grover’s head...Then Pan re-formed.**

“What’s going on?” Hazel wondered. “It sounds like he’s already died.”

“He should have.” Nico told her.

“No he shouldn’t.” Hermes snapped.

“Apologies Lord Hermes but he should. The only reason Pan survived for so long was the Satyr’s belief in him. He’s not even fully there, it was kind of like a memory of sorts.” Nico tried to explain. He gave up as the expression on Hermes’ face grew darker and darker. Hephaestus decided to keep reading before his half brother found a way to smite the demigod without his powers.

**“I have slept many eons,” the god said forlornly...painful passing, my dark twilight sleep. It must end.”**

Grover grimaced. He hated the idea that he had helped cause Pan any pain and yet he was selfish enough to be glad the Lord of the Wild had held on long enough for Grover to meet him. 

Dionysus sighed sadly. 

**“No!” Grover’s voice trembled...This…this is more like a memory.”**

“No.” Hermes shook his head once more but deep down he knew it was true.

**“But gods can’t die,” Grover said...My realm is gone.**

Hermes seethed. All of his previous sadness and hurt morphed into rage. Mortals had done this. They had destroyed his son’s realm and now Pan was gone forever. He would destroy someone for this. The mortals would pay for forcing his son to fade. He blinked when the power didn’t immediately react and then he recalled he didn’t have his powers. The god growled in frustration.

“Dad?” Chris asked nervously. 

“They will suffer.” He snarled.

“Who will suffer?” Connor asked.

“Mortals.” Hermes stated. “They destroyed my son.”

“Er, well, maybe we should hold off on the smiting until the books are done and you have your powers back.” Travis suggested. Hermes stared at him intently, making his son fidget uncomfortable, until he finally nodded.

“Fine.” He agreed. Hephaestus continued reading before Hermes could change his mind and do something stupid.

**That is why I need you to carry a message...Tell them of my passing.**

“They aren’t going to believe him.” Frank said. “He’s past the week they gave him and I’m willing to bet they won’t want to listen to a thing he says.”

“They won’t want to believe him so they won’t.” Dakota agreed.

**Because they must stop waiting for me to save them...He meant half-bloods, too, and humans. Everyone.**

Hermes snorted disdainfully and Dionysus seemed to agree with the sentiment. Humans were the main cause of Pan fading in the first place. They wouldn’t help.

All of the demigods nodded. The Greeks had already been told by Percy but even the Romans looked to be in agreement. They would do their part for the wild.

**“Percy Jackson,” the god said...you will not be ruled by fear.”**

“Of course you won’t.” Apollo said firmly. “We know you’ll make the right choice.”

**He turned to Annabeth...though it may not be the role you imagined.”**

Annabeth frowned. She still didn’t know what Pan had meant by that and it bothered her. She didn’t even know what role she imagined she would play, let alone the fact that she wouldn’t play that role apparently.

**Then he looked at Tyson. “Master Cyclops...name shall live among the Cyclopes for generations.**

Poseidon smiled proudly at his son as Tyson puffed out his chest.

“I’m sure it won’t just be the Cyclopes who remember your name.” Triton grinned. 

**And Miss Rachel Dare…”...He raised his hand in a blessing.**

Rachel had to choke back tears again as she was just delighted and shocked as when Pan had actually blessed her. She still couldn’t believe he had given her a blessing considering what her father did. Rachel knew she tried to make up for it but until that moment she had never thought that it would be possible.

**“I know you believe you cannot make amends,”...A tear traced her cheek.**

“What does your father do?” Reyna asked Rachel quietly.

“You’ll find out. I’m pretty sure I tell Percy soon.”

**“I know you don’t believe this now,” Pan said...Pan said kindly, “will you carry my message?”**

“You are a brave Satyr.” Rachel told Grover.

**“I—I can’t.”...why you must be the first to release me.”**

“That’s a lot to ask.” Dionysus said in a tone close to sympathy. For a Satyr who was the truest believer in Pan, it would be an incredibly difficult thing for him to let go. Yet he would be the most important one to do so. The wine god didn’t want him to let go because that would mean his best friend would fade completely but even he could accept that it was a better fate than lingering on painfully.

**“I don’t want to.”...“I’ve spent my whole life looking for you. Now…I release you.”**

“Well done, Mr Underwood.” Dionysus nodded though he looked sad.

“NO! Not well done!” Hermes snapped. “He’s letting my son die.” 

“Hermes.” Dionysus said softly. 

“No. Enough. Mortals destroyed my son’s realm and now this Satyr gave him his blessing to fade.” Hermes rose from his seat both furious and grief stricken. First Luke and now this. It was too much. He paced up and down the middle of the hall. 

**Pan smiled. “Thank you, dear satyr. My final blessing.”...And we were alone in a dark cave, with an empty bed.**

“No.” Hermes sobbed. The rage left him and grief welled up to take its place. He sunk down to his knees in the middle of the throne room. “My son.” Connor, Travis and Chris made to get up but Dionysus beat them to it. He was beside Hermes in an instance, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. 

“Come on.” He coaxed him to the couch Dionysus had been sitting on. Pollux shifted up so Hermes had room to sit down. He and the wine god sat and cried together, mourning their son and friend.

**I switched on my flashlight...“Are…are you okay?” I asked him.**

“Sorry, stupid question.” Percy grimaced.

“It’s ok.” Grover told him. 

**He looked older and sadder...The great god Pan is dead.”**

“Done.” Hephaestus said, looking quite relieved by this fact. 

“Let us take a five minute break.” Chiron suggested. He knew what must be coming up very shortly and figured waiting any longer wouldn’t be helpful. They would give Hermes a few minutes to collect himself and then press on. The centaur suspected that they would need to finish for the night once they had read about the battle. 

All the demigods got up to go and stretch their legs. The Hermes kids cast anxious glances at their father but decided to give him a few minutes before they went to check on him. Dionysus seemed to have everything in hand for now. 

Percy looked over at Apollo who had come with him out of the throne room. He knew the fight was coming up where Lee died. And he knew Apollo needed to know that ahead of time. He just didn’t know how to tell him.

“Apollo.” Percy began.

“Yeah?” The sun god grinned at him.

“Look, you know that Kronos’ army is heading to Camp which means there was a battle.” Percy looked at him grimly. “And Campers died in that battle.”

“Yes.” Apollo frowned. “That does happen in batt...oh. Are you telling me that..?”

“I’m sorry.” Was all Percy could say. He stepped forwards to hug Apollo. The god wrapped his arms around Percy automatically. The embrace was comforting but it did nothing to help with the numb feeling that was flooding through his veins. Some of his children were going to die. Logically he knew that the war with Kronos would not be completed without casualties but reading about it...that was something else entirely. He blinked several times, trying to clear his vision. It didn’t work.

“I’m guessing it’s coming up, huh?” He asked hollowly.

“The next thing we did after we met Pan was go to Camp.” Percy confirmed. Apollo rested his head on top of Percy’s and let out a pained sigh. He did not want to go back and read anymore. But he knew he had to. He needed to know. He squeezed Percy tightly, kissed the top of his head and then stepped back.

“Come on.” They went back to the throne room. Most people were already back. Apollo gave Percy a strained smile and then left him to go and sit with Will and Michael. They both looked at him quizzically. Then Will grimaced.

“I guess Percy told you then?” The sun god could only nod. He slung an arm around each of his children. Hermes was still sitting next to Dionysus who had Pollux on his other side. The Hermes kids sat on their father’s other side so Dakota went to sit with Reyna to help relieve her of Octavian babysitting duties.

“I’ll read.” Ares stated. He picked up the book and found the correct chapter.


	19. Grover Causes a Stampede

“Did he play his music?” Thalia asked jokingly, trying to keep the mood light for as long as possible.

“Oi!” Grover protested. “I have improved a great deal on my pipes.”

“True but your taste in music hasn’t.” She grinned.

“You’re the one with no taste.”

**Distance was shorter in the Labyrinth...crystal cave where I’d watched a god die.**

Hermes inhaled sharply at the almost immediate reminder. Dionysus looked like he was about to join his half brother in breaking out in tears once again.

**I led the way into an alley, where I could get a nice echo...followed by four of his white friends.**

“How does he know exactly how many people are with you?” Jason asked, intrigued.

“I whistled five times so five Pegasi came.” Percy grinned.

“There are six of you.” Dakota pointed out, counting in his head.

“Rachel couldn’t come to Camp as she’s mortal.” Annabeth explained.

“That’s pretty useful. Can all Pegasi hear you when you whistle or is it just Blackjack?” Piper asked.

“I’m not sure. I’ve only ever tried to call Blackjack.” Percy said, looking thoughtful.

“As long as you know the name of the Pegasus you would be able to summon any of them.” Triton told him.

**Yo, boss! He spoke in my mind. You lived!**

“He didn’t need to sound so surprised.” Percy grumbled.

“Considering all that happened in the Labyrinth I think he had a right to be a little surprised.” Frank reasoned.

**“Yeah,” I told him. “I’m lucky that way...but eventually he agreed to carry Tyson.**

“Brave Pegasus.” Triton muttered.

“I had to give Guido so many extra sugar cubes.” Percy grinned.

**Everybody started saddling up—except Rachel...“We couldn’t have done it without you.”**

“Obviously.” Rachel laughed.

**“I wouldn’t have missed it...“You mean…you’re rich?”**

“You’re alright for a rich kid.” Percy grinned.

“Gee, thanks.” Rachel rolled her eyes.

**“Well, yeah.”...I hate it, but he plows it down and builds ugly subdivisions and shopping centers.**

“What?” Artemis looked furious. Rachel shrank back from the fury radiating from the goddess. Hermes looked equally angry.

“Hey!” Percy glared at both of them. “It’s not Rachel’s fault what he dad does. She does everything she can to protect and restore the wild.”

“Filthy mortals.” Artemis was still scowling but no longer doing so in Rachel’s direction. Hermes, however, was still glaring right at Rachel who was trying to subtly hide behind Reyna.

“Dad, calm down.” Connor hissed. “It’s not her fault that Pan died.” Hermes looked at his son like he’d been slapped.

“You heard…” He began furiously.

“I heard that she hates what her dad does.” Travis cut him off. “And there isn’t a lot she can actually do about it. Now quit glaring at her.” His dad took to glaring at the floor instead.

**And now that I’ve seen Pan…Pan’s death—”...I don’t care what your dad does.”**

“Thank you, Percy.” She said sincerely.

“I meant it. I don’t care what your dad does. You’re awesome.” Percy grinned at her.

**Rachel looked at me gratefully...feelings had gotten pretty missed up the last couple of days.**

“I’m glad you called me over the summer.” Rachel admitted.

“Me too.” Percy nodded. It had been awesome hanging out with Rachel and getting away from all the combat missions that had ramped up to ridiculous amounts. Apollo scowled.

**“I mean…I’d like that,” I said...“No. I kinda…memorized it.”**

“Of all the things to memorise.” Octavian scoffed. 

“Oh stuff it, Octavian.” Dakota rolled his eyes. 

**Her smile came back slowly, but a lot happier...Pegasus kept shying away from him, reluctant to let him mount.**

Nico sighed. He wouldn’t call himself an animal person in general but it would be nice if animals didn’t always try and get away from him.

**He smells like dead people!...Oh—uh, I didn’t mean you, boss.**

“Blackjack is great.” Silena laughed.

“Yeah he is.” Percy agreed with a grin.

“I wish I could understand Pegasi.” She sighed.

“Well, if you want to talk to one of them, I’m happy to translate sometimes.” He offered. Percy knew that Silena loved the Pegasi as much, if not more than he did. He only had a special affinity with Blackjack, whereas Silena adored them all.

“That would be amazing.” She squealed delightedly.

**“Go without me!” Nico said...“For you. but I’m not staying.”**

“Hey. Why did you agree to go back for Annabeth but not me?” Percy frowned.

“Because I still didn’t know how to feel around you.” Nico admitted. “And we were in a hurry so I didn’t want to waste time arguing.”

**I raised an eyebrow at Annabeth, like...and a couple of Apollo cabin archers.**

Apollo swallowed hard and tightened his grip on his kids.

**Chiron raised an eyebrow when he saw Nico...Most of our defenders are already in place. Come!”**

“At least you made it back before the battle started.” Reyna said grimly. She could tell Percy and Annabeth were both important leaders to the Greek Camp plus they were good fighters. 

**“Wait a moment,” Silenus demanded. “What of the search for Pan? You are almost three weeks overdue,**

“That means you were gone for almost a month?” Frank frowned.

“Yeah. Don’t forget Percy got stranded on that island for a bit, plus time moves weirdly in the maze.” Hazel reminded him. 

“I know but it’s weird. It feels like it should only have been a few days.” He said. Hazel nodded.

**Grover Underwood! Your searcher’s license is revoked!”...He has passed on and left us his spirit.”**

All of the Greek demigods looked down sadly. Grover buried his face in his hands while Hermes was tempted to just cover his ears so he could stop hearing the constant reminders of what he had lost. If it wasn’t the death of his son it was the fact that his other son was being possessed by Kronos.

**“What?” Silenus’s face turned bright red...I will have you exiled for speaking thus!”**

“Why would Grover lie about something like that?” Reyna frowned.

“He wouldn’t. They were being stupid.” Percy scowled. He hated the stupid Council members.

“They just didn’t want to accept the news. It was much easier to keep believing and call Grover a liar.” Annabeth said sadly.

“That’s still stupid.” Percy grumbled.

**“It’s true,” I said. “We were there when he died. All of us.”...Silenus said. “We must deal with this—”**

“There is an army on the way. I think that takes priority.” Clarisse sneered. She disliked the Council of Elders just as much as Percy.

“Definitely.” Reyna nodded.

**“Silenus,” Chiron cut in. “My camp is under attack...Assuming we are still here this evening.”**

“Way to be positive, Chiron.” Poseidon muttered.

“I was being realistic.” Chiron told him grimly.

**And on that happy note, he readied his bow...rows of sharpened sticks to deflect a charge.**

Hephaestus nodded approvingly, though he did look a little worried.

**Beckendorf was manning two catapults...drilling in phalanx formation with Clarisse calling orders.**

“That’s my girl.” Ares smiled proudly. Clarisse nodded, appreciating the praise but feeling hollow as she recalled all those they had lost.

**Apollo’s and Hermes’s cabins were scattered in the woods with bows ready.**

Both gods pulled their kids closer. Hermes wasn’t sure he could stand the thought of losing any more of his children so he held them like his life depended on it.

**Many had taken up positions in the trees...offering to comb the tangles out of our horse hair plumes.**

Piper wanted to facepalm. Sorting out people’s armour she understood but combing tangles out of plumes? Her half siblings really needed to get their priorities in order. Aphrodite however was nodding approvingly.

“Well done girls.” She praised.

**Even Dionysus’s kids had found something to do...sweaty warriors with water bottles and juice boxes.**

Dionysus stiffened and looked sideways at Pollux so quickly his neck cracked. His son had a twin? And his twin wasn’t here. As it was Pollux looked like he was about to burst into tears and instantly the wine god knew. His other son had not survived. He felt cold all over. Every part of him cried out to deny the knowledge but it was obvious. His son died and he wasn’t even there. He was away from Camp. Had he even been able to say goodbye? He doubted it and that thought alone was enough to make him want to destroy something.

“Pollux…” He began, voice barely a whisper.

“His name was Castor.” Pollux stated, voice breaking slightly. The wine god hugged his son tightly, both of them crying silently. 

Pollux held onto his father in a way he had not been able to after Castor had died. Just hearing about his brother made his heart ache so much he wanted to scream. In their entire life they had never been separated more than a couple of days and now his other half was gone forever. 

Ares decided to keep reading to draw attention away from his half brother.

**It looked like a pretty good setup...I didn’t know if he could do anything.**

Dionysus wished nothing more than to have been there. He knew there was no way he would have been able to stay out of the fight. Nothing in the world could have stopped him from interfering when his children’s lives were on the line, whatever punishment might have come from it. Then he had another thought that stopped him cold once more. Was that why his father had sent him away from Camp? Yes there was war preparation to oversee but he wondered whether it had been him that had to go so he wouldn’t interfere in the battle. Obviously the battle had been expected for a long time and it shouldn’t have taken him a month to check on some of their old friends. He clenched his jaw in an effort not to start yelling at his father. He had no way of knowing if he was correct or not. Instead he just buried his face in Pollux’ hair.

**When it came to war, gods were forbidden to interfere directly. Apparently, the Titans didn’t believe in restrictions like that.**

“And the gods wonder why we get angry.” Percy muttered.

“That’s pretty sucky.” Rachel frowned. “Oh yeah, our kids are being attacked by Titans and don’t stand much of a chance but we can’t interfere. If the Titans interfere why can’t the gods?”

“The Ancient Laws…” Zeus began.

“Are rubbish.” Thalia scoffed. Her father looked scandalized.

“Enough! Let’s just get this over with.” Apollo broke in, looking angry and upset. The other gods nodded. Delaying was a nice idea but wasn’t actually helping. All it was doing was making them more nervous.

**Over at the edge of the clearing...You must go where we most need reinforcements.”**

Poseidon grimaced. While he knew this was a good idea it also put his son in the most danger.

**“I saw Kronos,” I said, still stunned by the fact...Luke’s form turning into ashes.”**

“I am surprised I did not think of the Styx.” Chiron sighed, looking annoyed with himself.

“You did have a lot on your mind.” Annabeth pointed out kindly.

**“Kronos said his body had been prepared.”...Hopefully it also restricts him.”**

“That’s the best we can hope for.” Hades nodded. “And I suspect it will very much restrict him. No matter whether he had bathed in the Styx, the boy’s body  _ is _ still mortal.”

**“Chiron, if he leads the attack—”...you pulled down his throne room on top of him.”**

“For once that wasn’t me.” Percy smiled. “That one was all Nico’s fault.”

“I couldn’t let you have all the fun.” Nico grinned.

“Just be careful.” Will said, recalling how exhausted Nico had been after the battle.

**He looked at me reproachfully...we must trust each other. We must…”**

“I do trust you, Chiron.” Percy said earnestly.

“I’m glad to hear it.” Chiron smiled at him.

**His voice wavered...Titan lord’s army exploded from the Labyrinth.**

Everybody tensed up. They knew this was going to be simply horrible to hear about. Those who had been there had no desire to hear relive it, the first time had been bad enough.

**I mean I’d been in fights before...a dozen warriors tossed to the wind like rag dolls.**

Ares grimaced, glancing over at Clarisse as if to make sure she was still there and unharmed.

“Was anyone injured?” He asked.

“Nothing major. Just some bruises.” She told him. The war god nodded.

**“Fire!” Beckendorf yelled...some of the giants vaporized at the touch of celestial bronze.**

“Good work guys.” Apollo told his kids, looking proud.

**But just when it looked like the Laistrygonians...engulfing several of the snake women.**

“Gotta love Greek fire.” Leo said.

“It’s good stuff.” Beckendorf agreed.

**But many more kept coming...I saw Annabeth draw a sword and engage one of them.**

Athena fought to keep a straight face but kept looking over at her daughter who was looking very grim. Anxiety rose in her chest. None of her children had been mentioned very much except Annabeth but that didn’t mean she was any less worried for them. In fact she was more concerned because at least she knew Annabeth had survived. 

**Nearby, Tyson was riding a giant...BONG! BONG! BONG!**

“Cool.” Dakota grinned.

“Nice work.” Triton complimented his half brother.

“Mean giant deserved it.” Tyson said firmly.

“I’m sure he did.” Poseidon smiled at his son.

**Chiron calmly aimed arrow after arrow...but it wasn’t much of a contest.**

Dionysus gripped Pollux tightly, his gut twisting in horrific anticipation.

**The enemy stabbed him in the arm then clubbed him over the head with the butt of his sword, and Dionysus’s son went down.**

Pollux let out a devastated noise full of both anger and pain. “Castor.” He whimpered. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t there.” He hadn’t even known his brother was dead until after the battle and he had found his body. They had been separated early on by the onrush of monsters. He could remember it like it was yesterday, staring down at his twin’s empty eyes, identical to his own. It was a vision that haunted him every time he closed his own eyes. Nausea rose up and he had to fight it back down lest he throw up on his father. 

“It was not your fault.” Dionysus whispered to him firmly. “Even if you had been there, you might have died as well.” Grief ripped through Dionysus so fast it stole the rest of his breath at the idea of losing both of his children at the same time. All he could do was hug his son and offer the wordless comfort he knew he wouldn’t have been able to offer at the time. He never had many demigod children and to lose one so young...and to another demigod. Rage rose to mix in with his grief. 

Pollux did not tell his father that a large part of him wished he  _ had _ died alongside his twin. That the only thing keeping him going was the idea of vengeance on Kronos. Once they had beaten the Titan lord, Pollux had no idea where he would find the strength to exist without Castor.

Dakota felt like he’d just been punched in the chest. It felt strange being so moved by the death of a demigod he’d never met, even if he was his half brother. Still, if he had been anything like his twin, Dakota knew he would have liked him a lot. Pollux was a great guy and Dakota’s grief was as much for Pollux as it was for Castor. He wouldn’t imagine losing a sibling, let alone a twin.

“You going to be ok here?” He whispered to Reyna, glancing at Octavian who was looking far to unbothered for Dakota’s liking. In fact, he almost seemed happy. It took a lot of restraint not to punch him in his stupid face. Reyna probably noticed because she nodded quickly.

“Go be with them.” She smiled sadly at him.

“Do you think they’ll want me there?” He asked, suddenly afraid he would be intruding.

“You’re family too.” Reyna reminded him. Dakota nodded and then made his way over to his father and half brother. When he spotted him, Pollux grabbed him and pulled him into a hug. Dakota suddenly found himself being slightly squashed with Pollux sobbing unrestrainedly into his shoulder. He awkwardly wrapped an arm around his brother’s shoulders and rubbed his back in what he hoped was a soothing manner. Dionysus was himself crying into Pollux’s hair but he did reach one arm around and grip Dakota’s arm.

**Another enemy warrior shot flaming arrows...The only person anywhere near was Nico di Angelo.**

Hades grimaced. That was a lot of enemies for his son to take on alone. 

**He stabbed a telekhine, and his black Stygian...and a dozen undead warriors crawled from the earth**

“Son, be careful.” He said.

“There wasn’t much choice. If I didn’t then the Camp would have been destroyed.” Nico pointed out.

“I know but I don’t want you to destroy yourself in the process. I doubt you’ve ever summoned that many before. Plus you’re probably going to summon more during the rest of the fight.” Hades sighed. He knew there was nothing he could do about it now but he couldn’t help himself. He had lost one child, he didn’t want to lose another.

“I recovered.” Nico promised.

“Honestly, you’re as bad as Percy.” Will muttered.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” Nico smirked.

**horrible corpses in military uniforms ...but I didn’t have time to make sure he was okay.**

Hades grumbled under his breath but he knew his nephew was right. 

**I closed on the hellhound...I scrambled away, breathing heavily.**

Poseidon let out a sigh of relief. At least Percy was uninjured so far.

“You really need to stop almost getting clawed to death by hellhounds at Camp.” Beckendorf said conversationally.

“I would if I could.” Percy shrugged. “At least that one didn’t actually hit me.”

**The satyr who’d gotten trampled wasn’t moving...but it was only making things worse.**

Grover’s hands balled into fists, even though he knew Juniper was just fine.

**I ran toward them, jumping past duels... Then a wall of water came rushing through the trees.**

“Good job.” Amphitrite smiled. “You have learned much from your experience at the ranch.”

“Yeah. I guess that place did come in handy after all.” Percy grinned.

**It doused the fire, Juniper, Grover...like she was going to tan somebody’s backside.**

“She’s scary when she’s angry.” Grover said fondly.

“Good for her.” Piper smiled.

**Just when it seemed like the battle had...Kampê shot into the sky, her bat wings fully extended.**

“Oh crap.” Frank muttered. “That’s not good.” He added quietly. All of the gods’ anxiety levels jumped up another notch. 

**She landed on the top of Zeus’s Fist...Others tried to run and got trampled by hellhounds or giants.**

All of the gods winced and grimaced, wondering if that was their children. Some of them were beginning to curse Percy’s descriptive mind. It was something they had admired so far but now it was more of a curse than a blessing. So far it hadn’t been too bad, except for the death of Dionysus’ son and none of the others had any desire to hear their children’s death described vividly.

**“Di Immortales!” Chiron yelled...“Stand! Do not run from her! Flight!”**

“Good for you, Tyson.” Triton nodded. “You’ll make a good commander some day.”

“You think so?” Tyson asked eagerly.

“I do.” Triton said solemnly. The cyclops beamed with pride.

**But then a hellhound leaped on him...Kampê landed on the Athena command tent, smashing it flat.**

Athena frowned and bit her lip worriedly.

“Was anyone in there?” She couldn’t help asking.

“Abigail.” Annabeth choked out. “She couldn’t get out in time.” Her half sister had only been thirteen. One of the youngest campers they had lost that day. Thalia squeezed her friend’s hand in support. 

Athena’s breath hitched. She had lost a daughter. For once the wisdom goddess was completely speechless. Hestia put a hand on her arm and shot her a sympathetic look. Athena didn’t even seem to notice, too lost in her grief.

**I ran after her and found Annabeth at my side...monster seemed able to fight with both hands independently.**

“She has been around for millennia.” Ares pointed out. 

“Yeah.” Percy sighed.

**She blocked Annabeth’s sword, and Annabeth...had to stumble backward to avoid getting bitten.**

Poseidon and Athena both cringed and eyed their children worriedly. Poseidon hugged Percy tightly while Athena contented herself with simply watching Annabeth while Thalia continued to hold her hand.

**Slam!...forelegs on our chests, holding us down.**

“Bad Kampe.” Tyson scowled at the book.

**Hundreds of snakes slithered right above me...standing over us, snarling and snapping at Kampê.**

“I’ve never been so pleased to see a hellhound.” Annabeth muttered.

“I bet.” Thalia let out a strangled laugh. She regretted not being there to help defend the Camp. While she knew the Hunters of Artemis had also been doing important work, it bothered her to hear about her friend’s fighting for their lives without her.

**“Good girl!” said a familiar voice...hundred rippling arms, each holding a huge chunk of rock.**

“Briares?” Poseidon raised an eyebrow.

“It seems Tyson did manage to get through to him after all.” Triton said.

“That’s good.” Hermes put in. “Briares can turn the tide. Especially if he manages to kill Kampe.” 

“And he will be a useful asset for the rest of the war.” Zeus nodded.

**“Briares!” Tyson cried in wonder...two green sword points sticking through the cracks.**

“Awesome.” Leo grinned.

“These Greeks, relying on monsters to slay other monsters for them. It’s pathetic.” Octavian sneered. “We would not need to rely on such filth.”

“You do whatever you have to do to survive.” Reyna hissed at him. “Such powerful enemies like Saturn means you have to make alliances in unexpected places. Besides, the Hundred Handed Ones fought alongside the gods in the first Titan war. If they are accepted to fight beside the gods then they are more than worthy to fight beside demigods.”

  
“That may be so but the Greeks are weak.” He said haughtily.

“They are not as cohesive as a unit as our legion.” Reyna allowed. “But I would not want to meet one of them in single combat. You wouldn’t last a minute in a fight against Percy Jackson. Or Annabeth.” Octavian spluttered at this.

“Of course I would best a daughter of Minerva.” 

“I highly doubt that but I’m more than willing to let them know what you’ve been saying about them and find out.” She threatened. Octavian glowered but did not say anything further.

**A cheer went up from the campers...Six giants cried in glee and rushed forward.**

“Chiron.” Apollo cried out in shock.

“No permanent damage was sustained.” Chiron smiled at the sun god. “I have young Grover to thank for that.” Everyone turned to look at Grover who went bright red.

**“No!” I screamed, but I was too far away to help...the sound of pure fear.**

“You used the Panic.” Hermes said, staring intently at the Satyr. Grover met the gaze and was very proud of himself when he didn’t cower away.

“I did. It was part of the blessing given to me by Lord Pan.”

“Very well.” Hermes nodded grimly. From what he had seen, his son had chosen well. He didn’t like it because it was further proof his son was completely gone but at least some part of his son lived on.

Reyna was watching Grover in awe. She had to wonder if it was possible for the Fauns to do such a thing at Camp Jupiter. If Pan had faded, then it was probable his Roman counterpart would have done the same. She definitely wanted some of the Satyrs to come and speak to her Fauns as it was, if Grover could teach them to use that then it would be a huge advantage.

**As one, the forces of Kronos dropped...The tunnel rumbled shut, and the battle was over.**

The gods all exhaled in apprehension. Now there would be an account of the dead and they were all terrified to know who else had been lost.

**The clearing was quiet except for the fires...shoot centaurs with broken… Ow! …broken legs.**

“It could have been worse than some broken legs.” Apollo sighed.

“It certainly could.” Chiron nodded. “You have my thanks, Grover.”

“Well I couldn’t let you die.” Grover shrugged, still bright red. 

“You saved more than just Chiron with that Panic.” Ares said, looking impressed. “You pretty much ended the battle single handedly.”

“Go, Grover.” Frank cheered. Hermes gave a faint smile. Pan might be gone but his spirit had helped to save the Camp, and thereby save some of his other children. It was what his son would have wanted. 

**“You need help,” Annabeth said...Tyson called, “Percy, come quick! It is Nico!”**

Hades stiffened. Persephone patted his arm and quietly reminded him that Nico was just fine.

**There was smoke curling off his black clothes...He coughed and spluttered, but his eyelids fluttered open.**

“Just exhaustion.” Hades muttered to himself.

“You really should have stayed in the infirmary.” Will said.

  
“They needed the space for others.” Nico shrugged.

“You wouldn’t have gone even if we did have the space.” Percy stated.

“Some doctors can be annoyingly persistent.” Nico grumbled, mock glaring at Will.

“Well someone has to look out for your health when you won’t.” Will shot back.

**“Nico, what happened?” I asked. “Can you talk?”...“I made a very bad mistake. I came to correct it.”**

Athena gave a slight smile. At least he had come through in the end. Even if it had taken far longer than it should have, and cost a great deal of lives.

“You don’t say.” Clarisse sneered angrily. “If you hadn’t given them the string none of that would have happened.”

“If he hadn’t they would have just killed him and taken it anyway.” Connor pointed out.

“You can’t tell me you’re defending him?” Pollux glared. That man had cost his brother his life. Death was the least he deserved.

“I’m just saying, the battle would have taken place no matter what. At least he came back to help eventually.” Connor shrugged. Pollux’ glare increased but Dakota squeezed his shoulder and he subsided.

**Daedalus had a few scratches that were bleeding golden...autographs on armor, shields, and T-shirts.**

Poseidon chuckled.

**“I found the Hundred-Handed One...“But you reminded me who I am, Cyclops. You are the hero.”**

“Yeah he is.” Percy grinned. “He always has been.”

“Percy is a hero too.” Tyson grinned back toothily.

“All of my children are heroes.” Poseidon stated proudly. “And I am proud of all of you.” Triton nodded while Percy and Tyson both beamed in delight.

“All of the children were heroes.” Chiron said, looking around at all of his campers. He was prouder of them than words could properly express.

**Tyson blushed, but I patted him on the back...Which is why the Labyrinth cannot continue.”**

Athena closed her eyes. She knew it was the right thing. Her son had avoided death for far too long as it was, even if his life force wasn’t tied to his creation but that didn’t make it any easier. Especially when she knew what would await him in the Underworld. The wisdom goddess could only hope that this time around, Hades would remove Minos and her son would get a fair trial.

**Annabeth stared at him. “But you said the Labyrinth...On the lid was the blue symbol Δ.**

Annabeth smiled at the mention of her laptop. It had been the best present she had ever received, except her cap, but it still made her sad that she had gotten it because Daedalus had needed to die.

“Daedalus gave you his laptop?” Leo whistled “That’s so cool.”

“It’s amazing.” Annabeth told him. “The ideas on it are so incredible.”

**“My work is here,” he said...But perhaps you will find it interesting.”**

“More than interesting.” Annabeth breathed.

“Yeah. We didn’t see you for weeks after you got that thing.” Percy grinned.

“Neither did dad.” Annabeth admitted sheepishly.

**He handed the computer to Annabeth...It is the least I can do before I pass on.”**

Athena nodded. She knew Annabeth would be able to do great things with that information. Daedalus could not have passed it on to a more worthy successor.

**“Whoa,” I said. “Pass on? But you can’t just kill yourself... hiding from my crimes for two thousand years.**

Hades nodded grimly.

**Genius does not excuse evil, Percy...That is all we can do, isn’t it?”**

The god of the Underworld looked pleased at this, although he suspected Daedalus was just saying that to placate Annabeth and Percy. Unless he personally stepped in, Daedalus would get no true justice and he had no idea why he would step in. As he had escaped death for so long, his future self was probably inclined to agree with whatever Minos came up with.

**He looked straight at Nico, and Nico’s face darkened...“No,” Nico said.**

“Good.” Hades nodded, looking proud. “I’m glad you made the right choice.”

“Me too.” Nico said, looking pleased by the praise. 

**“I will help you release your spirit...Will you care for her?”**

“No, he’ll get us to look after her while he goes to school.” Beckendorf pretended to complain.

“Don’t you look like that. You love playing fetch with her.” Percy said, looking amused.

“Well yeah, but I’m supposed to be the fun guy who just gets to play with her. You’re supposed to be her owner which means picking up her poop and all the gross jobs.” Beckendorf smirked.

“Well she seems to have chosen you to do that too.” Percy grinned back. Beckendorf heaved a theatrical sigh but the corner of his mouth was twitching in an effort to look put out and not smile.

**I looked at the massive black hound...especially dogs bigger than the apartment,**

A few people sniggered at that.

**but I said, “Yeah. Of course I will.”...Then the statue turned to gray ash and disintegrated.**

“Well done.” Hades nodded to Nico.

**Mrs. O’Leary howled. I patted her head...“Come on,” I told them. “We have work to do.”**

“The chapter is done.” Ares said heavily.

“Let us have dinner and then we should press on and finish this book tonight.” Chiron said. “Then perhaps we should take a day off before moving on to the future.”

“First, how many of our children died in that battle?” Ares asked tentatively. All of the Greek campers looked at each other. They had a silent conversation. Then Travis spoke up.

“Our cabin lost three members. Daniel, Amy and Harvey. Daniel was our brother but Amy and Harvey were unclaimed.” Hermes covered his face with his hands. Yet another blow. Another of his children lost. He felt like screaming. How much more would he lose? He wanted nothing more than to take his children and hide them away safely but knew that wouldn’t be possible. Connor clapped his father on his shoulder. The other gods exchanged pained glances. The idea that their children might have died unclaimed was horrible.

“Our cabin lost Abigail but we also lost Jonathon.” Annabeth announced, her voice scratchy and low. Athena let out a pained cry and then moved over to her daughter. She pulled Annabeth into a standing position and hugged her tightly. Annabeth hugged her mother back with equal enthusiasm.

“We lost...we…” Will tried to speak but he kept breaking off unable to say Lee’s name. The guilt and pain were overwhelming. Everything he had pushed down over the last year was resurfacing with a vengeance.

“We lost Lee, our head counsellor.” Michael stated quietly. “We also lost Jimmy, Ella and Lauren.” 

“No!” Apollo cried out in horror. He had lost four children! Four! Pain clawed at his insides and he clenched his fists. Even though Percy had warned him, it made no difference. He couldn’t breathe. He needed to do something, destroy someone. There was a chance his children had been killed by other demigods and not monsters. He would smite them all.

“Brother.” Artemis said. He jumped slightly as her voice came from right behind him. Apollo hadn’t even noticed her coming over. “Brother you need to calm down. Come, let us go and practise some archery.” He didn’t want to leave his children right now but he also didn’t want them to see him like this. His anger was too destructive and he could not risk them being hurt. It felt like he was being torn in two.

“Alright.” He finally conceded. His need to vent his wrath was growing by the second. “Boys, I will come and find you as soon as I’m done. If you don’t want to eat with the others you can use my rooms. I promise I won’t be long.” Apollo told them. They both nodded. Michael had his arm wrapped around Will’s shoulders as he sobbed.

“Dad…” Will began. “Lee, he...he...Lee died for me. I didn’t see someone coming up behind me, I was fighting two Dracaena, and he shoved me out the way of a giant’s club that was meant for me. It’s my fault! If I’d been paying more attention...” Will was crying even harder now so his words were almost unintelligible. Apollo closed his eyes but that was even worse.

“It was  _ not _ your fault. You were fighting two monsters at once. If you had been distracted by the giant then they might have killed you. Lee made his choice and I am proud of him for that. He died saving his brother. I cannot imagine a more heroic death for him.” Apollo stated. In truth his blood was boiling but it was not Will he was angry with and his son didn’t need his anger right now. Still, he was struggling to keep himself in check. He needed to go and blow off some steam or his son might take his anger the wrong way. “I’m sure you would have made the same choice had it been the other way around.” Will nodded at this, looking slightly better though there was still some guilt lingering in his eyes. He pulled him in for a tight hug and then he clapped Michael on the shoulder before he left the room with his sister.

Octavian watched as Apollo left the room. The god did not behave as he had expected. In fact, none of the gods did. He put this down to them being Greek which annoyed him. The first time he met his ancestor, he wanted it to be the proper version, the  _ Roman _ version. As far as he was concerned, this battle had been a good thing. Let the Greek demigods destroy themselves. The less Greeks in the world, the better in his opinion. It was such a shame that Reyna had taken a liking to them. Once they got back to New Rome he would be telling the Senate that their leader was making friends with the enemy. Then they would see he was truly the best option to lead them. He could use the information from the book to lead an assault on the Greek camp. Octavian nodded to himself, content with his plan.

“We lost Emily.” Silena cried into the silence that followed the twin’s departure. 

“Oh my poor girl.” Aphrodite groaned. She hugged Silena and Drew tightly while Jason held Piper’s hand. He knew it was hard for her. More siblings lost that she would never know. He knew she was glad for the chance to get to meet Silena but it was going to make it harder when he half sister did die in these books.

“What about you?” Ares turned to his daughter anxiously.

“Alex was killed.” Clarisse admitted. Chris squeezed her tightly. “And Neal lost a hand. There were some other pretty serious injuries but most of us made full recoveries.”

Ares swallowed hard and nodded. Then he closed his eyes briefly before standing up and striding angrily from the room. Clarisse exchanged a look with Chris. He nodded and Clarisse stood up. She kissed his cheek before following her dad out of the room.

“We managed not to lose anybody.” Katie told her mother. Both Demeter and Persephone let out relieved sighs.

“We didn’t lose anyone either.” Beckendorf informed his father. Hephaestus grunted and shot his son a small but pleased smile. Leo smiled slightly but it was marred by the fact that Beckendorf may have made it through the fight but he wasn’t going to live much longer either.

“Well, with that done, let us take a break.” Chiron said, voice heavy with grief. All of the gods who had lost children in the battle, rounded up their children in the room and ushered them off. Nico went over to Will who pulled him into a hug and sobbed on his shoulder. Nico looked so awkward that in any other situation Percy would have laughed but now he just shot him a sympathetic look. The son of Hades simply hugged Will and let him cry. Michael took charge and began to shepherd them towards the dining hall. He knew that they should eat, even if it was something light. 

Rachel sat with Grover, Percy and the rest of Percy’s family. The Romans had all gone off in a group, except Dakota who had gone with Pollux and his father. Frank didn’t feel the same bond with Clarisse and so kept his distance. Gwen had gone to give her condolences to her Greek siblings but had then left them to mourn with their mother and had gone back to the other Romans.

Chiron watched over the dining hall mournfully. It was emptier than usual as the gods who had lost children were in their quarters with their other kids. Except Apollo who had gone off who knew where with the promise to find his kids shortly. Yes they had lost a lot of good demigods that day but he couldn’t help but wonder how many more they would lose in the future. That battle had only been the first and the worst was yet to come. He could only hope they were prepared when the time came.

As soon as he had finished eating, Percy got up and left the room in search of Apollo. He checked the archery range but it was empty so he made his way to the part of the gardens where the sun chariot had been when they went for a ride. As he approached he saw Artemis and Apollo sitting in Artemis’ chariot, talking softly. Seeing that Artemis had the situation under control, Percy was about to leave her to it when she spotted him.

“Percy.” She called. Apollo looked up. His eyes were puffy and red, his cheeks streaked with tears. 

“Hi.” Percy said awkwardly as he approached the chariot. “I just...came to see if I could help.” Both twins smiled at him.

“That is kind of you. I shall leave the two of you to talk.” Artemis stated. “Remember what I said, brother.” She added. Then she gave her brother one last hug and ruffled his hair before heading back to Olympus.

“I’m sorry.” Percy said as he climbed into the chariot to sit beside the sun god.

“I know.” Was all Apollo could say. He pulled Percy into a hug. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“Is there anything I can do?” Percy asked. He’d never been good at this kind of thing and he felt incredibly awkward but Apollo had been there for him through all of his terrible moments.

“You’re here. That’s enough.” Apollo told him. In truth, nothing was going to make him feel better. He hadn’t even known his children, they didn’t even exist yet in this time, and yet hearing of their deaths had hurt more than anything else had in the past few centuries. They just sat together for a few minutes, soaking in each other’s company. Eventually Apollo spoke. “I need to go.” He said.

“I know.” Percy nodded. Apollo needed to be with his kids right now. “I get it. I just wanted to see you quickly.” The sun god gave him a smile. It was small and strained but it was real. Percy counted that as a victory for now. He squeezed Apollo’s hand and then they headed back to Olympus. 

“Are they still in the dining hall?”

“They were when I came to find you.” 

“Alright. Thank you.” Apollo said sincerely. He kissed Percy’s forehead before leaving for the dining hall. Percy headed to his dad’s quarters. He knew Chiron wanted to keep reading tonight but he had a suspicion that the dinner break was going to be longer than the usual allotted hour.

Apollo found Michael, Will and Nico sitting in a corner together. Michael smiled slightly when he saw his father approaching but Will didn’t seem to notice.

“Will.” Nico murmured. Finally the other boy looked up. He gave his dad a wobbly grin that looked much more like a grimace.

“Feel any better?” He asked.

“Not really.” Apollo told him. “I’m just less angry and more devastated. Come on, let’s go to my rooms.” Nico made as if to leave but Will held on to him, causing the son of Hades to go a little red. He didn’t put up any fight though. Will needed him so he would do whatever the son of Apollo needed. 

It was a couple of hours before everyone made it back to the throne room. Zeus was growing quite impatient but stern looks from both of his brothers and Hestia prevented him from complaining out loud. Now all of the Greek demigods were sitting with their godly parent, except Jason and Thalia who sat together with Annabeth and Athena. Dakota sat with Pollux and Dionysus but the other Romans all sat on a couch together.

“I shall read.” Aphrodite said, picking up the book. Her voice was still a little shaky but the words were clear.


	20. The Council Gets Cloven

“Oh great. More about  _ them _ .” Clarisse snarled.

“I’d rather hear about that than the funerals.” Chris whispered to her quietly. She nodded, reluctantly admitting he had a point.

**There were too many good-byes.**

Everyone looked down out of respect for the dead.

**That night was the first time I actually saw camp...been downed by a giant’s club.**

Apollo, Will and Michael all had fresh tears rolling down their faces. Will was feeling less guilty than he had been thanks to a talk with his dad but that just left more room for grief.

“Thank you, Lee.” He whispered.

I hope I can live up to your example as head councillor.” Michael murmured. “I’ll make you proud.”

“I’m sure you already have.” Apollo told his son quietly. “You’ve certainly made me proud.” Michael choked up a little but shot his dad a grateful smile.

**He was wrapped in a golden shroud without any decoration...His name was Castor.**

Dionysus closed his eyes and let out a shuddering breath. Pollux seemed to fold in on himself. He rubbed his chest, trying desperately to get rid of the gaping hole that was left. He nestled against his dad’s chest as they embraced, taking what little comfort he could.

**I was ashamed that I’d seen him around camp for three years and never even bothered to learn his name.**

The wine god couldn’t summon up the energy to be angry about that fact. He sent Percy a half hearted glare but the boy looked so ashamed he didn’t bother saying anything.

“I can’t believe I didn’t even know his name.” Percy muttered to himself. 

“Well, you didn’t exactly spend a lot of time at Camp.” Poseidon reminded him. “And when you did, you spent a fair amount of time on quests. You couldn’t know everyone.”

“There weren’t that many people at Camp.” Percy grimaced.

“It’s not your responsibility to know everybody.” His father told him firmly. 

**He’d been seventeen years old...sending smoke and sparks up to the stars.**

Everyone in the room looked down once more.

**We spent the next day treating the wounded, which was almost everybody.**

“It was manic.” Will grimaced.

“You were amazing.” Michael told him. Will was the best medic in the Apollo cabin by a mile.

“You really were.” Nico agreed.

“I’m just glad I could help.” Will smiled sadly.

“I’m sure you were fantastic.” Apollo stated. 

“How injured were you?” Ares asked Clarisse.

“Broken arm and some bruised ribs.” She shrugged. “Nothing major. Neal’s lost hand was the worst injury our cabin sustained.”

“You weren’t hurt too badly were you?” Poseidon asked his son.

“No. Only a couple of scratches for me.” Percy said. All the other gods were asking their children for an account of their injuries too. Once everyone had satisfied themselves their children were fully healed here, they turned back to Aphrodite who continued reading.

**The satyrs and dryads worked to repair...until the leg was strong enough to take his weight.**

Chiron shuddered. That had been a very long few months.

**The grove was filled with satyrs and dryads...Chiron persuaded him to at least hear evidence first,**

“That won’t change his mind.” Hermes said sadly. “He doesn’t want to accept it and there is no evidence except their word.”

“And the fact that Grover used the Panic. He wouldn’t be able to use that without Pan’s blessing.” Artemis pointed out.

“True but that could also be used to say that Pan must be alive to give him that blessing.” Apollo said.

**so we told everyone what had happened...And Grover used that power, calling it forth from within himself.”**

“It was pretty awesome.” Beckendorf said. “Terrifying but awesome.”

“Definitely useful too.” Rachel added.

**“Preposterous!” Silenus bellowed...music was so awful it scared the enemy away!”**

“Hey!” Thalia growled. “Only I get to insult Grover’s music.”

“Gee, thanks.” Grover rolled his eyes.

“Besides, there is no way you could confuse that noise he made with any kind of music.” Annabeth pointed out.

“I don’t know,” Percy grinned, “Grover’s early music.”

“Shut up.” Grover grumbled. “Some friends I have.”

“You love us.” Thalia smirked.

**“That wasn’t it, sir,” Grover said. He sounded a lot calmer than I would have if I’d been insulted like that.**

“I’m used to it.” Grover sighed.

“You know we’re only joking, right?” Thalia suddenly looked concerned.

“I know.” He said, still looking slightly unhappy.

“Hey, we know you can do some pretty awesome things with those pipes of yours. You are talented at nature magic. It’s just not my kinda music.” She smiled at him. Grover then smiled back.

**“He let his spirit pass into all of us...to renew the wild, to protect what’s left of it.**

“You should be doing that anyway.” Artemis stated.

**We must spread the word...We must continue the search! Exile the traitor!”**

“Someone punch him in the face.” Clarisse muttered angrily. A few other people were nodding in agreement.

**Some of the older satyrs muttered assent...believe this ridiculous young satyr, anyway?”**

“Anyone in their right mind.” Percy said.

“Grover has absolutely no reason to lie about this.” Rachel pointed out. “It makes no sense.”   
  


“Denial is a powerful thing.” Poseidon stated, throwing a significant look towards Zeus. Hades coughed, trying to hide a laugh while Zeus scowled at both of them.

**“I would,” said a familiar voice...from grief more than wine-withdrawal.**

Pollux and Dakota both hugged their father. He gripped both of them tightly.

**The satyrs all stood respectfully and bowed...around at the assembled crowd. “Miss me?”**

“Yeah. We certainly could have used you.” Pollux sighed. He knew his dad’s mission had been important but that didn’t stop it being annoying that the one time they desperately needed him at Camp he hadn’t been able to be there.

“I know. I wish I could have been there.” Dionysus replied grimly.

**The satyrs fell over themselves nodding and bowing...Zeus knows how many more.”**

“That is grave news indeed.” Hades said, looking troubled.

“Those are powerful enemies.” Demeter nodded.

“They will all pay.” Zeus growled.

“Kronos will offer them more than you can.” Percy pointed out. “He will offer them freedom and whatever else they want. Whether he keeps that promise is irrelevant but he will offer them their heart’s desire. All you offer is to punish them if they betray you and absolutely nothing if they don’t. They gain nothing from remaining on your side.”

“They will regret choosing the wrong side.” Zeus replied.

“If we are to change things, we need to find a way to tempt them to stay on our side.” Athena stated.

“And without simply threatening them.” Poseidon added, seeing the look on his brother’s face. 

“We can discuss this later.” Ares put in. “Let’s continue until we have more information. If we can find out what Kronos promised them, we can work out a way to turn them to our side.”

“For once I agree with Ares.” Athena said.

**Thunder rumbled in the distance.**

**“Strike that,” Dionysus said. “Even Zeus doesn’t know.**

“I doubt that was what he was objecting to.” Hades said dryly.

**Now, I want to hear Grover’s story... I am not in a good mood.**

“Understatement.” Dionysus muttered.

**You would do well to humor me.”...You must start thinking for yourselves.”**

“Did you at least manage to convince some of the other Satyrs to believe you?” Dakota asked Grover.

“Yes.” Grover said. “Not as many as I would like, but some listened.”

**He turned to a satyr...“I say no,” Dionysus countered. “That is my vote.”**

“Thank you.” Grover said sincerely.

“You were right.” Dionysus replied. “You should not be exiled for speaking the truth. No matter how distasteful.”

“Indeed.” Chiron agreed.

**“I vote no as well,” Chiron put in...two other old satyrs raised their hands.**

The Greek demigods all scowled angrily at the book.

**“Three to two,” Silenus said...And as I voted against, we are tied.”**

Everyone sniggered a little at that.

“Nice.” Pollux told his dad.

**Silenus stood, indignant. “This is an outrage!...“Then let it be dissolved!” Mr. D said. “I don’t care.”**

“It’s not like they do much good anyway.” Clarisse sniffed.

“They might seem like egotistical, stubborn old goats but they do serve a purpose. The Satyrs do need leadership.” Chiron reminded her gently.

“Well maybe they need to choose them more regularly rather than just when a Council member dies. Make sure the Council has members that are with the times and can be a little more flexible in their thinking.” Will suggested.

“Somehow I don’t think the Council will agree to that.” Grover said.

“I think the idea is worth discussing at a later time.” Chiron said, glancing at Dionysus. The wine god nodded his agreement. While his comment in the book had clearly been made out of grief, he did have a point. The Council did need to change, although he did think that dissolving it wasn’t the best idea.

**Silenus bowed stiffly, along with his two friends...which ones would defend the parks in the big cities.**

“Well done, Grover.” Chiron smiled.

“You’re a natural.” Percy grinned at his best friend. “The wild couldn’t be in better hands.” Grover blushed but grinned back.

“Thanks, Perc.”

**“Well,” Annabeth said to me, “Grover seems to be growing up.”**

“I am older than both of you.” Grover complained good naturedly.

**Later that afternoon I found Tyson at the beach...three-story compound with fortified walls, a moat, and a drawbridge.**

“Woah.” Leo whistled. “That’s pretty cool.”

“Mine always collapses if I try anything more than a basic sandcastle.” Piper said.

**Tyson was drawing a map in the sand...you will start to see fires burning.”**

“Briares will be a welcome addition to the forges.” Poseidon smiled.

“And to the fight in our realm.” Amphitrite added. “It sounds like we need all the help we can get.”

“Indeed.” Poseidon agreed grimly.

**“You’re giving him directions to the forges?” I asked...because I’d never even been in Poseidon’s kingdom.**

“You will see it someday.” Triton said. “I’ll even give you a tour.”

“That would be great.” Percy smiled.

**“They’re going to keep you really busy.”...“Busy sounds good! I only wish Tyson could go, too.”**

“Tyson went shortly afterwards.” Percy said. 

“I missed Percy.” Tyson sighed sadly.

“I missed you too big guy, but you’re needed down there.”

**Tyson blushed. “I need to stay here with my brother...“We will meet again, Percy. I know it!”**

“I hope so.” Percy smiled.

**Then he gave Tyson a big octopus hug...“I only talked to him.”**

“Sometimes that’s all you need to do.” Triton said. “You believed in him. You helped him to believe in himself.”

“You were amazing.” Poseidon told his son.

**“You believed in him. Without Briares...Tyson grinned. “He throws good rocks!”**

Everybody laughed.

“Nothing like some good old rocks.” Leo chuckled.

“Especially when you can throw one hundred at once.” Jason added.

**I laughed. “Yeah. He throws really good rocks...My friends and I were alive.**

Percy cringed internally as all the gods who had lost children in the fight scowled at the floor.

**The camp was safe. Kronos had suffered a setback...even at the head table with Chiron, but he had refused.**

“You fought with us and helped to save Camp. You should at least eat with us.” Will frowned.

“I can’t change that now. When I’m next in Camp, I promise I’ll eat with you.” Nico replied, shooting the son of Apollo a crooked grin.

**After dinner, the campers headed toward...without remembering the horror of so much fighting.**

All of the Greek campers frowned. They all had the same problem. Capture the flag had completely lost it’s fun. They didn’t have much time for games these days anyway but when they did, it was so easy to remember that battle that all the fights were half hearted at best.

**I couldn’t see Nico, but after a few minutes of walking...stood in the clearing, smiling at her brother.**

Hades looked at his son in concern.

“I was just saying a proper goodbye.” Nico assured him. He nodded.

**She said something to him and touched his face...“I’m not staying, Percy.”**

“It’s dangerous on your own.” Will said.

“I’ve survived this long.” Nico shrugged.

“That doesn’t mean your luck will continue to hold.” Percy pointed out.

“Ture but I’m close to some answers that I really need.” Nico said. He wondered if he would get the answers he was looking for in the books about the future.

**“But…you can’t just leave. It’s too dangerous...There’s a reason they didn’t put a cabin to Hades here, Percy.**

“Prejudices.” Will scoffed.

**He’s not welcome, any more than he is on Olympus...Nico would have to find his own, dark way.**

“What?” Hades frowned.

“I spent so long trying to find Nico and look out for him. But I understood that he needed to find his own path. I fully intended to keep looking out for him though.” Percy shrugged.

“Thank you for looking out for him.” Hades said.

**I remembered in Pan’s cave, how the wild god had addressed each one of us individually…except Nico.”**

Nico grimaced. So he wasn’t the only one who had noticed that. Well, given what had happened to the grass when he had used his powers, he wasn’t surprised. He was about death, not life. 

**“When will you go?” I asked...I know nothing about my past. I need to find out.”**

“I don’t blame you for wanting to know about your past.” Will said. “Just please continue to be careful.”

“I will.” Nico promised.

**“Makes sense,” I admitted...I should’ve listened to you about Bianca.”**

“I don’t blame you.” Percy waved this away.

**“By the way…” I fished something out of my pocket...“I don’t play that game anymore. It’s for kids.”**

“Even so.” Hazel said. “Your sister got it for you.” He swallowed hard and nodded. He still had the figurine.

**“It’s got four thousand attack power,” I coaxed...still be a kid once in a while.” I tossed him the statue.**

“Thank you.” Hades said once more. He felt it was important for his son to hear that. And he hoped he listened.

“That’s good advice. Now you need to take it too.” Poseidon told his son.

“I don’t have that luxury.” Percy sighed. He wished he did.

“Well then, we’ll just have to give you time to be a kid while we’re here. No wars going on right now.” Triton said. 

“I thought we were going to train.”

“We will. We’ll train and then we’ll make some time for fun.” Triton promised. Percy wondered what that would be like.

**Nico studied it in his palm for a few seconds...His hand was as cold as ice.**

“I’m always quite cold.” Nico shrugged.

“Not that cold.” Will frowned.

“I was still a bit tired from using my powers.” Nico assured him.

**“I’ve got a lot of things to investigate,” he said...but I nodded. “Keep in touch, Nico.”**

Percy grimaced. He wished he didn’t know what Nico had discovered. He wasn’t much looking forward to taking a bath in the Styx.

**He turned and trudged off into the woods...“Walk with me,” he said.**

Everyone looked at the wine god in shock.

**“Where to?” I asked suspiciously...You always manage to annoy me.”**

A few people chuckled.

**“Uh, thanks.”...I’m not sure I should thank you for that.”**

“Yes. You should.” Poseidon stated firmly, glaring at his nephew.

“If the Camp had been destroyed, so would  _ all _ of our children.” Ares snapped, also glaring at his half brother.

“I know.” Dionysus sighed heavily.

**“It was a group effort...the half-blood who’d gone insane in the Labyrinth.**

Hermes smiled. “Thank you.” He said to Dionysus.

“He did not deserve what happened to him.” The wine god shrugged.

**I turned to Dionysus. “You cured him?”...“But…you did something nice. Why?”**

“Percy.” Poseidon said in exasperation.

“Sorry. It was just surprising.” Percy grinned sheepishly. “Mr D being nice wasn’t exactly common.”

“He wouldn’t just leave one of his charges insane when he could cure him easily.” Apollo said.

“Well, given his attitude towards us all generally, I wasn’t entirely sure of that fact.” Percy shrugged.

**He raised an eyebrow. “I am nice! I simply ooze...that a kind act can sometimes be as powerful as a sword.**

“Those are some wise words.” Athena said, looking a little surprised.

“Always with the tone of surprise.” Dionysus drawled.

**As a mortal, I was never a great fighter...where they thought nobody could see them, I had to smile.**

Clarisse and Chris both went red.

“Chapter’s done.” Aphrodite announced as she beamed at the couple. “The next one will probably be the last.”

“Then let us finish.” Chiron said, voice heavy with exhaustion. They all needed a proper break. Everyone hoped the last chapter wouldn’t be too long.

“I’ll read.” Reyna offered. She took the book from the love goddess and began reading, wanting to get it over with.


	21. My Birthday Party Takes a Dark Turn

“Well that just sounds great.” Poseidon groaned.

“It wasn’t actually as bad as it sounds.” Percy said.

**The rest of the summer seemed strange...We played capture the flag (though we all avoided Zeus’s Fist).**

“It still wasn’t anything like our regular games.” Clarise admitted. “Even with avoiding Zeus’ fist.”

“It’s kind of hard to get into war games when you’ve had a proper battle in the same area.” Beckendorf agreed, looking grim. 

**We sang at the campfire and raced chariots...at night when she got lonely for her old master.**

“That got annoying.” Connor said. 

“She was really,  _ really _ loud.” Silena agreed.

“She quieted down once I fed her.” Percy shrugged.

**Annabeth and I pretty much skirted around each other...and it hurt when I wasn’t with her, too.**

Annabeth grimaced. That pretty much summed up how she felt about Percy at the moment. 

**I wanted to talk to her about Kronos...She would shut me out every time I tried.**

Hermes couldn’t really blame her for that. He was already sick of the topic being brought up every few minutes.

“I know it’s hard but it’s not really a topic that can be avoided.” Thalia told her friendly gently.

“Yeah, it’s just, talking about it with Percy was hard.” Annabeth said, closing her eyes and trying not to cry. She knew he didn’t mean to but every time he brought up the topic, Percy’s tone took on a ‘I told you so’ quality. Not to mention her confused feelings for both guys.

**July passed, with fireworks on the beach...Tyson and I would take turns visiting her during the year.**

“Good dog.” Tyson smiled. He liked Mrs O’Leary.

“Yeah. She is.” Percy agreed.

“Makes a good guard for the Camp too.” Beckendorf put in.

**I hoped Annabeth would be riding into Manhattan...which had engrossed her for the last two months.**

“Understatement.” Grover laughed.

“We barely saw you all summer.” Connor said.

“She almost decapitated me because I disturbed her when doing a cabin inspection.” Travis complained, though he was laughing.

“I did not.” Annabeth protested.

“Yeah, you did.” Connor chuckled. “I had to pull him out of the way.”

“You really should know better than to disturb Annabeth once she’s in the zone.” Beckendorf told them. “It’s pretty common knowledge.”

“We didn’t realise she was still in the cabin at the time.” Travis shrugged. “One second we were going in to do inspection and the next I almost got my head cut off.”

“Sorry.” Annabeth grinned sheepishly.

**Then she would head back to her father’s place...“I’ll probably hate it, but…” she shrugged.**

“Was it bad?” Connor asked.

“Not as bad as I was expecting but it’s not great.” She shrugged.

**“Yeah, well, call me, okay?”...opening up a huge box of hurt and worry and anger.**

“You best hope you don’t spot him.” Hermes stated grimly.

**“Annabeth,” I said. “What was the rest of the prophecy?”...We raised the spirit of Pan, the lost one.”**

“And then lost him again.” Hermes added bitterly.

**Annabeth shook her head like she wanted me to stop...By choosing to be on our side, he saved us.**

“More than once.” Percy said.

“Well, you saved me a fair few times too.” Nico reminded him.

**And the child of Athena’s final stand...“And lose a love to worse than death.”**

Hermes, Annabeth and Thalia all choked up. 

Connor looked over at Annabeth, feeling grim. He wanted to help make her feel better but he didn’t know how. He figured he might even make it worse, being Luke’s half brother. He was probably just a reminder of the love she had lost to a fate worse than death. Not for the first time he cursed his traitorous half brother.

**Annabeth had tears in her eyes. “That was the last line, Percy. Are you happy now?”**

“Of course not. I just wanted to make sure the prophecy was complete. I still hadn’t forgotten mine which didn’t come true until way after we got back from the quest.” Percy looked hurt that she thought he would be happy about that.

“Well, technically Luke betrayed you when he gave you the flying shoes that were supposed to drag you into Tartarus.” Grover pointed out.

“True but had thought it was a malfunction or something. The true betrayal to me was him trying to kill me.” Percy argued.

**The sun seemed colder than it had a moment ago...only one who really cared about me. I thought…”**

“That’s not true.” Grover frowned. “I cared. Chiron cared.”

“I know.” Annabeth sighed heavily. “But Luke was my closest friend, after Thalia.” Grover’s frown deepened.

**Before she could continue, a sparkle of light...her dark hair braided over her shoulder.**

“What are you doing there, dear?” Zeus looked sternly at his wife.

“I’m not sure.” Hera replied.

**“Hera,” Annabeth said...Pan is dead. How is that—”**

“Camp was saved.” Katie said. “Which was the point of the quest.”

**“Our family is safe,” Hera insisted. “Those others are better gone, my dear. I am proud of you.”**

“What?” Hermes growled. “How dare you..!”

“Pan is not better gone.” Dionysus scowled at his stepmother.

“Oh please. Pan has been gone for millennia, it’s not like we will notice his passing.” Hera said dismissively. Hermes rose out of his chair, fury written all over his face.

“Hera.” Hestia frowned unhappily. “Do not be so callous.”

“Hermes.” Apollo had stood as well and placed a hand on his brother’s chest. “As satisfying as it would be, pummelling her won’t help anything.”

“She just said…”

“I know what she said.” Apollo told him. “And she’s a complete cow but punching her won’t solve anything.”

“Now…” Hera began, looking affronted but Hestia shot her sister a glare and she shut up.

“It’ll make me feel better.” Hermes muttered. Apollo chuckled. He guided the god of thieves back to his chair where Connor and Travis both hugged him tightly so he couldn’t get up. Apollo sent Hera a scowl before retaking his own seat and gesturing for Reyna to keep reading.

**I balled my fists. I couldn’t believe...paid Geryon to let us through the ranch, weren’t you?”**

“At least that was helpful of her.” Aphrodite said tentatively.

“Not really. She didn’t pay for Nico to pass.” Persephone recalled.

“Maybe she didn’t know he was there.” Zeus argued.

“Oh, she knew.” Percy scowled at the queen of the gods. “She just didn’t care.” Hades now turned to glare at his sister.

**Hera shrugged. Her dress shimmered...No one wants him around. He does not belong.”**

“You…” Now it was Hades’ turn to start towards Hera but Persephone held him back. 

“She is not worth your time or effort, love.” She told him, loudly enough for Hera to hear her. The queen of the gods scowled but Persephone returned the glare in equal measure.

“For all your talk about family, you don’t truly understand what family means.” Poseidon told his sister with a disgusted expression. “Nico has just as much right to be accepted as anyone else.”

“He is an abomination born from cheating.” Hera scoffed.

“Watch your mouth.” Hades growled. Zeus clamped a hand on his wife’s arm as she made to reply.

“I think you’ve said enough.” He warned.

**“Hephaestus was right,” I growled. “You only care about your perfect family, not real people.”**

“I did warn ya, boy.” Hephaestus grunted. “If it’s not perfect, she throws it away.”

“Family is supposed to be messy.” Connor said. “It’s complicated and you fight a lot but at the end of the day you always have each other’s backs.” 

“Exactly.” Will agreed.

**Her eyes turned dangerously bright. “Watch yourself, son of Poseidon.**

“No. You watch yourself.” Poseidon said sternly.

**I guided you more than you know in the maze...I let your arrow fly straight.**

Apollo grimaced. Great, it hadn’t even been him that had helped Percy. Although it did make him smirk to think that Hera had helped but Percy offered his thanks to him and Artemis. That had probably made her pretty mad. She hated being slighted.

**I sent you to Calypso’s island.**

Apollo scowled furiously at that.

“How exactly was that helping anything?” Rachel asked curiously.

“It was a test.” Hera said as is if it should be obvious.

“And all it did was take up valuable time. That was not helping anyone.” Apollo glared.

**I opened the way to the Titan’s mountain. Annabeth, my dear, surely you see how I’ve helped.**

“No. Absolutely not.” Annabeth glowered.

“Well, some of her aid was required.” Demeter pointed out. Several people turned to glare at her for defending Hera.

“Let’s face it, Apollo and Artemis could have helped with facing Geryon. Paying for them to get through the ranch didn’t actually help anything because she didn’t pay for Nico and they couldn’t leave him behind. Guiding them to Mount Othrys certainly wasn’t helpful, all it did was almost get Percy killed. And sending him to Calypso’s island...also not helpful.” Hermes ticked off all the arguments on his fingers.

“Exactly.” Hades agreed. “You barely did anything.”

“Showing them Othrys did allow them to know for certain that father had gained a body.” Zeus argued.

“Great. So she did one semi useful thing that still almost got them killed.” Poseidon scoffed.

“One would think you’d be upset about the amount of interference Hera did.” Aphrodite said casually. “Given how angry you were with everyone else for brief appearances that actually helped those on quests.” 

“Like your visit to Percy?” Hera scoffed. “That was no help.”

“I didn’t say me.” Aphrodite rolled her eyes. “I meant Apollo when he helped them get a ride. Or Ares when he did the same, admittedly while giving them a quest. Neither of them ‘helped’ anywhere near as much as Hera did and yet you’re defending her.” Zeus gaped. He didn’t really have an argument for that. 

“Let us carry on reading and we shall discuss this later.” Was all he managed. All the other gods scoffed but agreed to keep reading for now.

**I would welcome a sacrifice for my efforts.”**

“I wouldn’t count on that.” Hermes snorted. 

**Annabeth stood still as a statue...brazier for Hera and forget the whole thing.**

“She wouldn’t be Annabeth if she did that.” Thalia laughed. “Especially as I think Percy has rubbed off on her.”

“Mentioning Mount Othrys was her mistake. Annabeth certainly wouldn’t thank her for that. With good reason.” Piper said. “Who would be grateful for being shown that?”

**But she clenched her jaw stubbornly...“You’re the one who doesn’t belong, Queen Hera.**

Hera gasped, looking mortally offended.

“Of course I belong. I am the one who holds this family together!”

“Nonsense.” Hades scoffed. “You can’t stand over half of this family.” 

“But she still probably shouldn’t have said that. Hera can be quite nasty and inventive when it comes to cursing people.” Demeter said. Athena glanced worriedly at her daughter. Annabeth simply shrugged. It was an annoyance but so far nothing she couldn’t handle.

**So next time, thanks…but no thanks.”...“I—I should get back. I’ll keep in touch.”**

“Not very much.” Percy said reproachfully.

“I was pretty busy.” Annabeth defended herself.

“With the laptop?”

“Yeah.” She grinned. He rolled his eyes but accepted it. He knew how she got.

**“Listen, Annabeth—” I thought about...I didn’t really want to be so distant from her.**

“I don’t want to be so distant either.” Annabeth told him.

“We’ll make it work.” Percy promised. Though he didn’t want to be as close as he previously had. Now he had Apollo. But he still wanted to get along with Annabeth. They made a great team and she had saved his life so many times. “You’re one of my best friends.” She nodded.

**Then Argus honked his horn down at the road...and I didn’t have that many mortal friends.**

“You didn’t tell me.” Rachel frowned.

“Sorry.” Percy said. “I didn’t really feel much like celebrating.”

“Why not?”

“Because it was my last birthday before turning sixteen.” He grimaced. Her eyes widened in understanding.

**Besides, getting older didn’t seem like anything...destroying or saving the world when I turned sixteen.**

Poseidon let out a pained sigh and closed his eyes. It wasn’t fair. His son couldn’t even celebrate his birthday properly. Percy was a fifteen year old kid with the weight of the world on his shoulders.

**Now I was turning fifteen. I was running out of time...nothing to do with the band room explosion.**

“Thanks for that.” Percy grinned at Chiron.

“Well, we can’t have you being expelled before you even started the school.” The Centaur said with an amused expression.

“That would be a record, even for me.” Percy laughed.

**Now Paul and the other witnesses were convinced...I’d have to try harder.**

“Please don’t.” Poseidon groaned.

“It’s cool, dad. I actually managed not to get kicked out.” Percy assured him.

“There’s a first time for everything.” Beckendorf grinned. “Great job, Percy.”

“Thanks.”

**Tyson came to my party, too, and my mother...signed you up for driver’s ed this fall.”**

“That is pretty terrifying.” Beckendorf chuckled “Imagine the destruction Percy could cause when he can drive.”

“I’d rather not.” Poseidon winced.

“Hey! I’m not that bad a driver.” Percy protested.

“Maybe not but you have a habit of blowing things up.” Leo grinned. “And that’s easier when you have a car to help.”

**“Yeah. It’s cool. I can’t wait.”...I guess it was that teacher aura.**

“Indeed.” Chiron smiled.

**“You’ve had a rough summer,” he said. “I’m guessing you lost someone important. And…girl trouble?”**

“Woah. That’s seriously impressive.” Connor whistled.

“Yeah.” Chris agreed.

**I stared at him. “How do you know that?...Well, you’ve had a rough time.”**

“Paul’s a good guy.” Percy smiled. He was pleased his mom had finally found someone who actually treated her well and made her happy.

  
“He sounds it.” Thalia said, nodding approvingly.

**I nodded. I’d promised my mom I would tell...And to a better year to come.”**

“Sadly, I wouldn’t count on that.” Clarisse muttered darkly.

“It’s not been too bad so far. But the next two weeks, once we get back, are going to suck.” Percy grimaced.

“Well, hopefully the next book will give us information so we can make it better.” Grover said.

**We tapped our paper cups together and drank...“I’m thinking about proposing to her.”**

“That’s awesome.” Piper grinned.

“Yeah. It is.” Percy agreed.

**I almost dropped my cup. “You mean...wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t talk to you about it first, man to man.”**

“That really is decent of him.” Reyna stated, looking impressed.

“Indeed.” Poseidon smiled. It was a good thing that Percy had a decent stepfather. Especially after the last scumbag. 

**“Man to man,” I repeated. It sounded strange... “I think that’s a great idea, Paul. Go for it.”**

“You’re a good kid.” Persephone said with a smile.

**He smiled really wide then...It was my dad.**

Everyone turned to look at Percy and Poseidon.

“Your dad came to your birthday party?” Apollo asked in astonishment.

“Yeah.” Percy grinned. Despite the news his dad had brought about Typhon it was still the best birthday present he could have asked for.

**He was wearing Bermuda shorts and a Hawaiian...She was blushing right to the roots of her hair. “Um, hello.”**

Poseidon smiled.

**“Hello, Sally,” Poseidon said...Poseidon took it as a yes and came in.**

Poseidon’s smile grew wider and his expression turned more than a little smug. Amphitrite rolled her eyes and smacked him on the arm.

**Paul was looking back and forth between us...they shook hands. “Blowfish, did you say?”**

Everyone snickered.

“You totally did that on purpose.” Triton laughed.

“I might have done.” Poseidon flashed an innocent smile that nobody bought for a second.

**“Ah, no. Blofis, actually.”...“Very much like that, yes.”**

More laughter.

**“Well!” my mom interrupted...“Not mine,” she promised. “It’s a long story.”**

There was another round of laughter.

“I did get around to explaining.” Percy snickered. “Paul was pretty good about it actually.”

“Yeah. He’s a good guy.” Nico nodded.

**“I couldn’t miss Percy’s fifteenth birthday,”...Poseidon’s eyes twinkled. “That’s me. Ancient history.**

Yet another round of snickering erupted around the room.

**Sally, Paul, Tyson…would you mind if I borrowed Percy...Tell me everything.”**

Percy smiled. While it had been strange telling his dad everything but it had also been nice. For one, it was the longest conversation he had ever had with his dad but he also just listened. He didn’t judge or anything.

**So I did. It was kind of disconcerting...It is most disturbing.”**

“That’s one word for it.” Hermes muttered. Everyone else once again looked tense, the good mood evaporating far too quickly for everyone’s liking.

**“But his body is mortal. Couldn’t you just destroy him?”...Unfortunately, I have other problems of my own.”**

Poseidon sighed. 

“We shall manage.” Amphitrite told him softly. “We always have.”

“Yes, I just fear this time is different. War came to us first and a long time before it came to the rest of the gods apparently.” Poseidon replied grimly. “We may not have the strength to help the others if things go badly.”

**I remembered what Tyson had told me at the beginning...in fact, I cannot stay long.**

“Hey, I’m grateful you came at all.” Percy told him. “Best birthday present ever.” Poseidon smiled.

“I’m glad.” He gave his son a sideways hug.

**Even now the ocean is at war with itself...“Let me come down there,” I said. “Let me help.”**

“You are needed on the surface.” Poseidon told him.

“All I was going to be doing was going to school. I would be way more useful with you.” Percy said.

“I cannot risk you. If you were to die or be captured by Titan forces it would be disastrous.” His dad stated gently. Percy frowned. He didn’t like it but he understood.

**Poseidon’s eyes crinkled as he smiled...“Uh, spend a sand dollar?”**

“Those can be quite valuable if you know where to spend it.” Triton smiled.

“Er...ok.” Percy grinned sheepishly.

“Did you try and put it in a vending machine?” Annabeth asked, amusement written all over her face. Percy went bright red.

“I might have done.” He admitted.

  
“A vending machine?” Poseidon asked, eyebrow raised.

“Er...yeah. I had no idea what to do with it.”

“You will know when the time comes.” Amphitrite assured him.

**“Oh, yes. In my day, you could buy quite...He decorated his arena with skulls and—”**

“Ah, yes.” Poseidon wrinkled his nose.

“It’s ok. I know you don’t like stuff like that now.” Percy said.

**“He dedicated them to me,” Poseidon supplied...And you, Percy, are my favorite son.”**

Percy grinned widely, leaning against his dad, Poseidon’s arm wrapped around his shoulders.

“Well, no father’s day card from me then.” Triton said jokingly, a fake pout on his face.

“You don’t send me one anyway.” Poseidon reminded him.

“Oh yeah. Well now I definitely won’t.” Triton folded his arms across his chest. His mother rolled her eyes.

**He smiled, and at that moment, just being in the kitchen with him was the best birthday present I ever got.**

Poseidon momentarily felt very pleased by this and then the realisation that his spending a few minutes with his son was considered the best birthday present Percy had ever received made him sad. He regretted being unable to spend more time with Percy before now and that he hadn’t sent him anything when he was growing up. Maybe this time around he could change that. 

**Then my mom called from the living room...realized he was talking about something a lot bigger.**

A few people sniggered.

“I love how you consider that more important than blowing up a volcano.” Thalia said in amusement. Apollo was less happy about where Percy’s mind had gone but there was nothing he could do about it now. Except make sure the only kisses Percy was thinking about were his.

**“The eruptions are continuing,” he said...it will be unlike anything you have faced before.**

“If Typhon awakes, it will be us who face him, not demigods.” Ares pointed out. “There is no way they could face him. Not even Jackson or my daughter.”

“True.” Poseidon nodded.

**The first time he appeared, all the forces of Olympus were barely enough to battle him.**

“And this time Poseidon is busy fighting his own war.” Athena stated, looking worried.

“My guess is that was deliberate.” Ares said simply. “Isolate one of our best fighters.”

**And when he stirs again, he will come here, to New York... had no choice but to believe it.**

“Yeah, thanks for that dad. You couldn’t have used the front door and  _ then _ vanished.” Percy rolled his eyes.

“Sorry.” Poseidon said but his eyes twinkled mischievously, indicating he wasn’t very sorry at all.

**We ate blue cake and ice cream until we couldn’t eat anymore...nervous as a door into the Labyrinth.**

Rachel frowned. Percy had clearly gotten over that as he had called her several times in the year since then so she wondered what had bothered him so much. Maybe it was Annabeth’s reaction if she found out?

**I patted my pockets and emptied out my stuff...a baby moonlace, growing in the warm summer night.**

Katie and Demeter both smiled.

“Good job on honouring her request.” Hephaestus said. “She’ll appreciate that.”

**“Nice plant,” a voice said...He’d just appeared there.**

“Been practising shadow travel?” Hades raised an eyebrow at his son.

“Yeah.” Nico. 

“Just make sure you’re careful.”

“Yup.” Nico nodded. “I did have a few accidental trips to China when I first started.” He grinned. Hades rolled his eyes.

“Of course you did. I assume that exhausted you?”

“Yeah. I spent like a week in China the first time.” WIll looked at him in concern.

“Were you ok?”

“Just tired.” Nico assured him. “It was pretty cool.”

**“Sorry,” he said. “Didn’t mean to startle you.”...but my father had other ideas.**

Hades was surprised he had actually stepped in.

**Daedalus will be building overpasses and exit ramps in Asphodel for all time. It’ll help ease the traffic congestion.**

The god of the Underworld nodded. That was actually a good idea. Athena smiled. At least her son was doing something he would like.

“Not really a punishment. He’ll enjoy that.” Zeus pointed out.

“It needs to be done.” Hades shrugged. “And Minos  _ was _ biased.”

**Truthfully, I think the old guy is pretty happy...his son and Perdix on the weekends.”**

“Nice.” Annabeth smiled.

**“That’s good.”...“If I’m right, it’s the only way you’ll stand a chance.”**

Everyone frowned at Nico. Then Poseidon and Hades’ eyes widened at the same time.

“Absolutely not.” Poseidon stated. 

“It might be the only way to level the playing field.” Hades argued.

“Or it could kill him!” Poseidon shot back angrily.

“I already agreed to do it, dad. Once we got here.” Percy put in.

“Besides, the next book might well tell us what happens if he does.” Hades pointed out. Poseidon nodded. Hopefully they would then be forewarned of any problems. He swallowed hard. Once they started reading the next book he would no longer have the assurance that Percy did survive. Oh he was totally going to have a heart attack. He was  _ not _ looking forward to the next one.

**I took a deep breath. “Okay. I’m listening.”...“Come inside for some cake and ice cream,” I said.**

Hades smiled. 

**“It sounds like we’ve got a lot to talk about.”**

“That’s it.” Reyna announced. “The book is finished.”

“Well that sucked.” Hermes stated.

“Indeed.” Chiron sighed. “Let us break for the night.” 

Before anyone could move there was a loud bang and a much thinner book was dropped in the middle of the throne room with a puff of smoke. Chiron went to pick it up. He frowned down at it.

“There is a note stating we should read this before we start the next book.”

“Well, we were going to take a break tomorrow. Maybe we could read that instead. It is pretty small and we should be able to finish it in a day. Then we can heave the rest of the day off and start the next book the day after.” Annabeth suggested.

“A sound idea.” Chiron agreed. “Sleep well everyone.”


	22. Evening interlude

Everyone then began making their way out of the room. It had been a very emotional day so most people decided to get an early night.

Clarisse spotted her father heading off in the direction of the fighting arena. She glanced at Chris who simply smiled and gestured for her to go and follow Ares. She kissed him on the cheek.

“You’re the best.”

“I know.” He smirked. “I’ll see you in the morning.” He let go of her hand and she made her way after her father. By the time she arrived at the arena, he was in the middle of destroying several dummies at once. Even without his godly powers, his raw power and grace took her breath away. She had never seen anybody fight like that. It made it clear exactly how much he had held back when they had sparred the other night. Once he had finished the set of maneuvers he had been in the middle of, she spoke up.

“Fancy some company?” Ares whirled around in surprise. Then he gave her a smile.

“Of course.” She picked up a shield and spear from the rack before joining him in the middle of the arena. He grinned at her.

“You want to spar or go through some moves on the dummies?” He asked.

  
“Moves and then spar?” 

“Great idea.” Clarisse then began going through some of her movesets from camp. Her dad watched, occasionally correcting her or offering up an alternative which was usually easier than what she had been trying. 

“Tell me about Alex?” Ares asked softly after a little while. Clarisse almost missed her shot in surprise. She stopped fighting and looked at him. Then she swallowed hard before nodding. She started talking while continuing with her moves. Once she started, Clarisse found it hard to stop and so just kept telling stories about every stupid thing Alex had done and every monster he had killed. Then she found herself talking about the rest of her cabin too. She told her father about how Neal was managing with one hand and how Bellatrix had accidentally set off one of the mines they placed in front of the cabin to prevent intruders which resulted in more trips to the infirmary, thankfully for nothing serious. 

While she talked, they had moved from practising moves to actually sparring without even discussing it. It helped. Fighting gave her a way to channel the emotions she didn’t really want to deal with. The helplessness and pain she had felt when she had watched Alex die in her arms. Then the guilt she had felt when Chris came was healed and she was happy. Her brother had died and many other siblings had been gravely injured but she had been happy.

As she talked, Ares just listened. He didn’t comment, although he did laugh at some of the stories she told. He focused on controlling the urge to destroy everything. He might not fight his kids battles for them but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to rip whoever had killed his son, limb from limb. Sparring helped, as did some of the other stories about his other kids. The ones from simpler, happier times.

Still, as she talked, more and more emotions got mixed in and as a result the fight became more ferocious. After a while, Clarisse stopped talking as she needed all her concentration to hold off her father. He was still holding back but not enough to annoy her. They were perfectly in tune and every time she got a foothold in the match, Ares stepped it up a gear but when it was clearly becoming too much for her he stepped it down again. The fight lasted a good hour before he finally called an end to it.

“That’ll do for tonight. We both could use a shower and then an early night.” He said.

“Yeah.” Clarisse nodded. A shower sounded like heaven right then. Her father slung an arm around her shoulders and they walked to his quarters.

******************************

Annabeth was walking around the gardens, imagining all the ways she would improve Olympus if she had designed it. It was best to keep her mind busy, or she would just dwell on what had become of Luke. She was just considering a statue of her mother by one of the fountains when a voice startled her out of her thoughts.

“Not being smothered by your mother?” Connor asked.

“She tried.” Annabeth admitted. “And it was nice at first but I needed some time to clear my head.”

“Fair enough. Dad’s currently occupied with Chris so Travis and I took our leave. I don’t think Chris was too appreciative so Travis and I will probably be on the end of a prank sooner or later.”

“That book was pretty rough on your dad.” Annabeth pointed out.

“I know.” Connor sighed. “It was rough on everyone, but him in particular. Still, it won’t kill Chris to be his centre of attention for an hour or so.” He jogged a little to catch up with her and they walked together in silence for a while. “How are you doing?” He asked suddenly.

“I’m ok.” She answered automatically.

“Actually ok, or is that the same kind of ok as when Percy says ‘fine’?” He gave her a shrewd look that was quite strange on his face.

“The second one.” She admitted after a few seconds. Usually she would have just said she was always ok but something told her Connor would know she was lying. And not just because he was the son of Hermes.

“That’s not surprising. I don’t think any of us are fully ok after relieving that.” He shrugged. “But that’s probably normal.” She nodded.

“Well, that’s enough of the depressing talk. Tell me about your favourite prank you’ve ever played.”

“Well, the easter eggs on top of Demeter’s cabin was pretty hilarious. I don’t know why they got so upset. They got a bunch of chocolate out of it.”

“Has Kaite forgiven you yet?”

“She’s probably forgiven Travis.” Connor pulled a face that made her laugh. “Not sure about me yet. The golden mango prank was pretty awesome too.”

“For you. I had to help break up those fights.” She sent him a fake glare.

“You could have just left them to keep fighting it out.” He smirked. “I think the best part was when someone slapped Drew right in the face. She totally deserved it.” Annabeth chuckled. She did have to admit Drew was one of the most annoying Aphrodite girls. He continued describing several other pranks he and his cabinmates had played over the years. He did carefully avoid mentioning the ones they had played on the Athena cabin, guessing they wouldn’t be quite so appreciated.

After a little while he gave her a regretful smile.

“Sorry, I really should go and relieve Chris.”

“That’s ok, I understand.” She nodded. “Thanks for the company. And the distraction.”

“Anytime.” He shot her a smile and then left. She watched him leave, grinning to herself. Then she shook herself and decided to head back to her mother’s quarters.

**************************

Will dragged Nico towards the dining hall. None of them had eaten much during dinner time but given what he knew about the last year, he knew Nico needed to eat properly. Besides. Michael deserved some one on one time with their dad. Will had had plenty since they first arrived here.

“I’m really not hungry.” Nico protested.

“You barely ate any dinner and lunch was ages ago. You should eat something.” Will told him. Nico sent him a glare that he happily ignored. The son of Hades then studied him for a second.

“Alright, I’ll eat if you do.”

“I had dinner.” Will protested.

“No you didn’t. One slice of pizza does not count as dinner.” Nico shot back. 

“I’m not hungry.”

“Then I’m not hungry either.”

“Fine.” It was Will’s turn to glare.

“If you’re going to insist on looking after me then I get to do the same to you.” Nico smirked.

“You’re impossible.”

“Thank you.” Will rolled his eyes at this. In the dining hall, they ordered their food and to Nico’s surprise, Will asked for it to be ready to take away. He also whispered something else to the wind spirits that delivered the food and there was a high pitched giggle from it that immediately made Nico suspicious.

“What did you just say?”

“Nothing.” Will grinned innocently. Nico groaned.

“I’m going to hate this, aren’t I?”

“I hope not.” Will replied and he was looking serious now. Nico smiled fondly. Once their food arrived in a picnic basket, Will grabbed Nico’s hand and dragged him towards the gardens. Nico fought back a grimace. Thankfully, they only seemed to be passing through. Eventually they stopped at a very large rock emerging from the earth Nico had never seen before. On one side was an entrance to what looked like some sort of small cave.

“They have caves on Olympus?” He asked curiously.

“No. I sort of asked your dad to make this place.” Will admitted, looking slightly nervous. Nico raised an eyebrow in surprise, both at Will talking to his dad and his dad agreeing. They went inside and the area was lit by loads of black candles that gave off a weird green light. Nico had seen them in the Underworld and assumed his dad had also given these to Will. 

  
“This is really cool.” He said.

“Really?” Will was still looking anxious.

“Yeah. I love it. I can’t believe my dad helped you with all this.”

“He was great. Although I think Persephone might have had something to do with persuading him too.” That surprised Nico even more. He thought Persephone hated him. Will spread out a blanket in the area in the middle of the floor which was clear of candles. Then he unpacked the basket of food.

“This is amazing. Best surprise ever.” Nico grinned gratefully at Will who smiled happily in return. There was also some relief in his expression.

“I figured a typical picnic in the gardens wasn’t really your thing.” The son of Apollo grinned.

“Not really.” Nico agreed. Then they dug in and the son of Hades was amazed to find he was actually starving. There wasn’t much talking going on while they ate. Suddenly Will turned to look at him with a serious expression.

“Nico...I really like you and I know we’ve been getting real close and stuff but we’ve never...we haven’t actually talked about it and I...well, what I mean to say is...I know you had a massive crush on Percy but I was hoping…” Will just kept rambling until Nico went red but grinned at him.

“I’d love to be your boyfriend officially.” He cut Will off in the middle of a sentence.

“You would? I mean...that’s awesome!” Will looked shocked and then delighted. He reached out and grabbed Nico’s hand. Once they had finished their food, Will produced a chocolate cake that made Nico grin eagerly. Between them they finished the whole thing.

“I’m stuffed.” Nico complained. “I’m never eating again.”

“You’ll be fine by the morning.” Will chuckled. “But I’m pretty stuffed too.” They sat there for a while longer. Will wanted to know what Nico had been up to for the last year so he reluctantly told him the majority of it. By the time he had finished, it was dark outside too so they both decided they needed to head back. They walked to the main building and they went their separate ways.

***************************

Apollo sat with Michael in his quarters, feeling a little awkward. After a few stilted attempts at conversation, they both agreed to head out to the archery range. Archery was Michael’s favourite activity, the same as Lee. That thought made him sad but also more determined to shoot. He wanted to honour his fallen brother. 

While they were shooting, Apollo asked questions about his other children. Michael told him how Jimmy had been one of the best medics in the cabin, after Will. Those two had run the infirmary really well, working brilliantly as a team. Alice had stepped up as Will’s second in command and she was really good too but lacked the confidence that Jimmy had had. He spoke about how Lauren was great at shooting and her favourite arrows were the farting ones the Hunters favoured. She had greatly enjoyed hitting the Ares cabin with those, which made Apollo laugh. He also chuckled at how Michael described how bad at music she was. They hadn’t known that one of their siblings could be so bad at pretty much an instrument. Nor could she sing for toffee but she loved to do so and was always singing really loudly and terribly off key. That also made him laugh. It was rare for his children to be quite so bad at any of his realms but it did happen. Apparently Ella had been quite the opposite and was very musically gifted. Her favourite instrument was the flute and she sounded like an angel when she played.

“We had a new sister arrive a few days after the battle happened, Melody, and she seems to have taken your aspect of god of logic and reason. She spends all her time in debate with the Athena cabin. She’s pretty much the only person at Camp who can actually win an argument with that lot.” Michael grinned.

“That’s awesome.” Apollo smiled. It was also pretty rare for one of his children to take on one of his minor aspects as their main talent. Usually his kids got archery, music and healing as their main talent and they were good at the others. It was nice to hear about someone being different.

They spent a while longer talking about the Apollo cabin and some of the missions they had been doing over the last year. At the same time they moved on to doing trick shots and hitting moving targets. 

Apollo watched Michael shooting and was impressed. He was very good and given the way he spoke about his siblings, he seemed like a good choice for cabin leader. 

“Be back in a sec.” He said suddenly. Michael looked a little confused but nodded. Apollo headed back to his quarters and grabbed a quiver that was sitting in the corner. It was something he’d been considering for Will before he realised that healing was his preferred area. It was full of arrows, some of which were his own recent invention. He made his way back to the archery range.

“That was quick.” Michael grinned.

“Here.” Apollo held out the quiver. Michael looked at him in surprise. “You’ve got five compartments for different types of arrows and they hold more than it looks like they do. Here you’ve got concussive arrows.”

“I love those.” Michael grinned.

“You do?” Apollo frowned. “I only invented them...oh. From the future. That’s weird. I’m glad you like them.”

“They are my favourite.” 

“There are also fart arrows, stun arrows and sunburst arrows. Plus one compartment of regular arrows.”

“Sunburst arrows?” Michael frowned. “I haven’t seen those.

“Yeah. You hit a monster and they explode into a blinding flash of sunlight which momentarily blinds everyone in a five to ten foot radius.”

“Wicked.” Michael grinned excitedly. “This is awesome. Thanks dad.”

“Well, I did give Will a healing belt. And I wouldn’t want to play favourites.” He grinned. Michael laughed. They continued shooting, doing more and more outrageous shots. Eventually Michael had to concede but they were both laughing the whole time.

Once they had finished, they headed back to Apollo’s quarters where Will was waiting for them.

“You guys look like you’ve been having fun.” He commented.

“We were shooting.” Michael grinned. “Some of dad’s shots were absolutely ridiculous.”

“I am thousands of years old with a lot of time on my hands.” Apollo smirked. Michael then began showing off his new quiver which prompted Will to show his tool belt and medical equipment. Apollo sat back and watched them both fondly. He found himself wondering how awkward it would be if Percy was here with them. He wanted to be able to have his boyfriend and his kids together but he knew the situation made it really bizarre and probably too awkward. 

“What were you doing?” Michael asked suddenly. Will went a little red.

“I was with Nico.” Apollo perked up at this. 

“On a date?” He asked eagerly. Will went even redder.

“Maybe.”

“Oh, do tell.” Michael grinned. 

“Absolutely not.” Will stated firmly. “It’s none of your business.”

“Don’t make me go and ask Nico.” He threatened. Will glared.

“Don’t even think about it! Or you’ll regret it.”

“Will I? Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Will nodded. “I will enlist all of the Hermes kids to help extract my revenge. Plus Nico can be pretty creative when it comes to people who annoy him.”

“Oh alright.” Michael pouted. 

“Come on you two. Let’s turn in.” Apollo said. They both nodded and all made their way to their respective bedrooms.

************************

“Hey, Percy!” Beckendorf called. Percy looked back. Beckendorf, Leo and Tyson were all standing in a group. “We’re about to head to the forges to start making some small chariots for the mini chariot races. You want to come with us?” His first reaction was to say no, he didn’t know anything about forging stuff but it would be nice to spend some time with Tyson. Maybe he could have some input about the designs.

“Sure.” He agreed. The look of delight on Tyson’s face was definitely worth it. They made their way to the forges, which were right next to Hephaestus’ quarters. Percy had never set foot in there before but the room was huge. And hot, naturally. 

“So, here’s what Tyson came up with for you guys.” Beckendorf handed him a sheet of paper with some drawings on.

“Wow, Tyson. These are awesome.” Percy said. “I didn’t know you could draw like this.” Tyson blushed a little. He bent over the drawings and offered a few suggestions for improvements. He thanked Annabeth’s teachings which allowed him to at least have a vague idea of half of the things Tyson was talking about. 

Tyson and Leo started actually using the forges. Beckendorf was guiding Leo but letting him take the lead. Leo was thoroughly enjoying learning from the older boy. He could easily tell why he was the head councillor of the Hephaestus cabin and he wished he had been at Camp when Leo had arrived. Leo certainly hoped that his death was one thing that could be changed with this reading. Still, he was determined to learn as much as possible from him while they had the time.

“How are you?” Beckendorf asked Percy quietly while the other two were distracted. “These books are getting rougher, on top of having your thoughts read out loud.” Percy considered.

“I’m ok really.” He said honestly. “It’s tough obviously but I’m getting used to it. I’m just not looking forward to the future books. The main fight is coming. How many more people are we going to lose?”

“At least those people we have a chance to save. We can work out a plan to sort out the future.” Beckendorf said. Percy nodded.

“Yeah. But so far I think we’ve gained loads by being here, and not just information.” 

“Definitely.” Beckendorf agreed. Then he gave Percy a considering look. “Are you worried about hearing the prophecy?”

“Yes.” Percy replied immediately. “But I also want to know. It’s been hanging over me for almost four years. I’m also worried about the five other books after the next one. Does that mean there is going to be another prophecy? I really don’t want to be involved in another one.”

“Well maybe those books are about the Roman’s side of things. They must be here for a reason.” Beckendorf reasoned. Percy nodded. He had a feeling it wouldn’t be as simple as one set of books for the Greeks and one set for the Romans. They were probably going to end up mixing at some point or they would have just sent each group their set of books. Plus Jason was a Roman but he had arrived with Leo and Piper who were Greeks.

“I guess we’ll just have to see.” Percy sighed. Beckendorf nodded. He moved back to help Leo with something right as Hephaestus came in. He came over and had a quick chat with his kids about what they were doing. Percy sat back and just watched. Then Tyson came over with a small chariot in his hands. 

“What do you think?” Tyson asked.

  
“It’s awesome, big guy.” Percy grinned. He looked it over. “We’ll totally win with this.” Tyson nodded eagerly. They spent a little while playing with the chariot and making sure it worked properly. Eventually they all broke up for the night. Tyson and Percy went to Poseidon’s quarters where the sea god and his wife were having a quiet dinner. Everyone went to bed early. 

**********************

The next morning Percy was woken by his dad shaking his shoulder.

“Apollo is here for you.” Poseidon told him. Percy blinked sleepily.

“What?”

“He’s waiting outside.” With that he left the room. Percy yawned and rubbed sleep from his eyes before hopping out of bed and into the shower. He showered at top speed and dressed just as quickly before hurrying out to meet Apollo. He didn’t dare stop and talk to his family because he could easily guess what they would say.

“Hey.” Apollo greeted him. “Nice shirt, even if it’s inside out.” Percy looked down and noted that his shirt was indeed inside out. He cursed. He quickly whipped it off and put it on again the right way round.

“Right, morning. What are you doing here so early?”

“I thought we could catch another sunrise.” Apollo said with a beaming smile. 

“Sounds great.” Percy grinned. He really was going to have to become a morning person if he was going to continue dating the sun god. They made their way to where the chariot waited and made themselves comfortable. Once they had taken off, Apollo produced a plate of blue pancakes. He admired the way Percy’s eyes lit up in delight. Percy snatched them out of his hands and began to devour them. Apollo chuckled.

“Hungry are you?”

“Starving.” Percy said through a huge mouthful of pancakes. Apollo managed to snag one pancake and eat it without Percy stopping him but the ferocious glare he received in return meant he didn’t bother grabbing another one. “I don’t share food.” Percy told him sternly.

“I noticed.” Apollo laughed. “Good thing is out here I can summon my own food.” He snapped up some more, regular pancakes and ate his own.

“Even more reason not to eat mine. You can make your own.”

  
“I made your too.” Apollo reminded him.

“But then you gave them to me so they are mine.”

“Technically you grabbed them off me.”

“Same thing.” Percy grinned. Apollo laughed. Once he finished eating he moved over and slung an arm around Percy’s shoulders. Percy shifted slightly so he was leaning against Apollo’s chest and let out a sigh of contentment. The view really was worth it. 

“You want anything else?” Apollo asked.

“I could use something to drink.” 

“Diet coke?”

“You read my mind.” Percy grinned. Apollo handed him a can of diet coke summoned from thin air. Percy sipped it happily and then leant forwards to get a better view of the sea that was currently underneath them. Then he had an idea. “I’m going for a swim.” He said.

“What?” Apollo frowned. Then his eyes widened. “Oh no! Definitely not!” 

“Come on. It’ll be fun.” Percy smirked. Then he took a last sip of coke before standing up and jumping off the side of the chariot with Apollo yelling his name behind him. There were a long few seconds where he could hear nothing but his own heartbeat roaring in his ears and then he hit the water with a terrific splash, startling a nearby school of fish. He did a somersault and chuckled to himself as he recalled Apollo’s face. As he thought his name, the sun god appeared next to him in the water. Percy summoned an air bubble to surround them. 

“What were you thinking?” 

“I’ve jumped into the sea before.” Percy grinned. “It’s great fun.” Apollo grabbed him and pulled him into a tight hug. “At least this time nobody was trying to kill me when I did it.”

“That’s a pleasant change.” The sun god said, now looking slightly amused. “Come on. We should be getting back or we’ll miss breakfast.”

“We already had breakfast.” Percy reminded him.

“So you wouldn’t eat a second breakfast?”

“Of course I would. But we could have that here.” 

“Don’t tempt me.” Apollo told him. “I think your dad might kill me if I don’t have you back in time for breakfast. Especially as it’s a late one today.”

“Oh well. I suppose we must then. I’d hate for him to kill you.” Percy smirked. 

“Glad to hear it.” Apollo kissed his forehead and teleported them back to Olympus. Apollo cursed as he realised he was soaking wet and no longer had his powers with which to dry himself. He poked Percy in the ribs because his boyfriend had the audacity to be both completely dry and laughing at the fact he was not. They headed back towards the dining hall. Quite a few people were there already as they had had an early night. 

“Why are you soaking wet?” Poseidon asked Apollo.

“Your son decided to take a dive off the chariot earlier.” Apollo shot Percy a fake glare.

“Why did you decide to do that?” Triton asked Percy in amusement.

“We were driving over the sea and it all looked so beautiful I couldn’t resist.” Percy shrugged. Poseidon, Triton and Amphitrite all nodded in understanding. They all finished eating their rather late breakfast and then returned to the throne room, hoping for a less stressful day than yesterday.

“I’ll read then.” Piper offered. She picked up the new book. There was no title. She turned to the first page. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw the first line.


	23. Diary of Luke Castellan

**Diary of Luke Castellan**

Everyone’s mouths fell open in shock.

“Luke wrote a diary?” Connor wondered in astonishment.

“Hey! It’s something not from my point of view.” Percy cheered. Privately, he doubted hearing from Luke’s point of view was going to be uplifting but he was going to enjoy the break while he could.

“Why do we even need to know this?” Thalia scowled.

“No idea but the Fates obviously thought it was important.” Apollo said, though he was frowning. So much for today being a good day. He doubted anything Luke had to say was going to improve people’s moods.

**My name is Luke...I should probably start with the magic goat.**

“This? He wrote about this?” Thalia frowned.

  
“What is ‘this’?” Annabeth asked.

“It’s what happened right before we met you.” She explained. She glanced over at Apollo anxiously. He wasn’t going to come out of this very well from what she remembered. And to be fair, he didn’t deserve to.

**For three days, Thalia and I had been...goat was some sort of sign from her dad, Zeus.**

“The goat isn’t a symbol of Zeus.” Ares stated.

“It was Amaltheia.” Thalia explained. “Dad sent her to me a couple of times.”

**Yeah, her dad is a Greek god...parents don’t even talk to us, much less help us.**

Hermes winced at that.

**Why? If I tried to explain that...I’d learned to trust her judgment. So we followed the goat.**

“Not the weirdest sign a demigod has ever been sent.” Silena said.

“At least he had some good sense at some point.” Percy muttered. Trusting Thalia’s instincts was almost always a good idea.

**Early in the morning, we made it into Richmond...I’d run away when I was only nine—five long years ago.**

Hermes grimaced. His son had been on the run for over five years before he made it to Camp. It was amazing he had survived so long, even with Thalia’s help. In fact her presence was more likely to attract stronger monsters in greater numbers.

**I barely remembered what it was like to sleep...“Hide!” Thalia pulled me behind a row of rosebushes.**

“Why are you hiding from it?” Annabeth asked.

“Because I wasn’t entirely sure it was a good sign.” Thalia admitted. Zeus looked affronted.

“I wouldn’t send you anything that would hurt you.” He stated. 

“Back then I wasn’t sure of that.” Thalia shrugged. Zeus frowned.

**“It’s just a goat,” I said for the millionth time...Her hair is dark and choppy like a feral animal’s.**

Now Thalia was frowning. She reached up to check her hair.

“It’s not that bad.” Silena said, studying her. “I mean, it could use some work but feral is a bit much.”

“To be fair, they had been on the run for a while. She did look a little feral.” Annabeth laughed. 

“Hey!” Thalia glared at her.

**Her intense blue eyes bore into you as if she’s considering the best way to beat you to a pulp.**

“That’s still true.” Will laughed.

**Anything that scared her, I had to take seriously.**

All of the Greek demigods were nodding in agreement.

“Same as Percy.” Nico said.

**“So you’ve seen this goat before?” I asked...Thalia had never mentioned a goat.**

“You met Luke outside a dragon’s cave?” Hermes asked.

“Yeah.” Thalia nodded.

“Are you sure the goat led you to Luke and not to the dragon cave?” Percy asked. Zeus glared. He wouldn’t send his daughter to a dragon’s cave on purpose.

“Of course I’m sure.” Thalia snapped.

**As far as her old life in Los Angeles...Eventually Zeus dumped her, as gods tend to do.**

All of the gods who had affairs with mortals all looked momentarily ashamed. They never really considered the effects their leaving had on the mortals, or their children.

**Her mom went off the deep end, drinking...until finally Thalia decided to run.**

Jason and Thalia both grimaced.

**In other words, her past was a lot like mine.**

Hermes frowned. He wondered what had happened to Luke’s mother.

**She took a shaky breath. “Luke, when Amaltheia appears...She’s like a warning from Zeus, or a guide.”**

“But is she guiding you to the same thing she’s warning you about?” Travis wondered.

“Probably.” Dakota nodded.

**“To what?”...but nobody seemed to notice the radioactive goat.**

A few people snickered in surprise.

“That’s a new one. Radioactive goat.” Leo laughed. “I like it.”

**That didn’t surprise me...Mortals might see the goat as just a stray dog, or they might not see it at all.**

“A radioactive stray dog?” Beckendorf sniggered.

**Thalia grabbed my wrist...She always gets her way.**

“He’s not wrong.” Annabeth smiled.

“If I always got my way he wouldn’t be in the situation he’s in right now.” Thalia muttered through gritted teeth.

**Besides, I couldn’t let her go without me...Once in a while I’d befriend a mortal,**

“He would what?” Travis asked in astonishment.

“I thought Luke hated mortals.” Connor said.

“No.” Chris corrected. “He thinks they are beneath him but he doesn’t really hate them.” 

“I wonder why he thinks that.” Beckendorf frowned. “Luke hates being a demigod, why would they be better than mortals?”

“Because we have powers and mortals don’t. Plus he didn’t feel so strongly about it until Kronos got in his ear.” Chris pointed out.

**but whenever I told them the truth about me...“That is so cool! I wish I was a demigod!”**

“I guess when you don’t have to live it, it does sound like it should be cool.” Piper said.

“Yeah, and then you live it and realise it kinda sucks.” Leo muttered.

“It has its upsides.” Percy said with a grin at Apollo and his dad.

**Like it’s some sort of game...Press Here for Ice, and Diet Mountain Dew.**

“What the hell?” Dakota frowned.

“Pepsi instead of coke? Big mistake.” Dionysus scoffed.

“Why  _ diet _ mountain dew?” Frank asked.

“Why does a goat dispense drinks at all? I mean, if she nursed Zeus then nectar kinda makes sense but what about the rest of them?” Leo said.

**Or maybe I read them wrong. I hoped so...Oh, by the way, my weapon was a golf club.**

“His only weapon was a golf club?” Hermes asked, looking anxious.

“He did have a sword but there was...er...an accident.” Thalia grimaced.

“What kind of an accident breaks a celestial bronze sword?” Reyna wondered.

“Acid.” Thalia said.

“Acid?” 

“Long story.” She grinned.

**Feel free to laugh. I used to have a sword…went commando on us, I’d be in trouble.**

“That would be kinda funny.” Beckendorf sniggered.

“Being beaten up by a goat?” Silena raised an eyebrow.

“ _ Luke _ getting beaten up by a goat.” He corrected.

**I cleared my throat. “Um, Thalia...how the old Titan king swallowed his own children.**

“Yeah. Good thing Zeus was so rock like as a child.” Poseidon laughed. Hades and Demeter both sniggered. Even Hestia looked amused but didn’t actually laugh.

“He never grew out of looking like a rock.” Hades muttered.

“Shut up.” Zeus glared.

**Thalia nodded. “So this goat...“It’s okay. He didn’t mean to insult you.**

“It wasn’t an insult. The goat’s udders were labelled with five different flavours.” Connor rolled his eyes.

**Why have you led us here, Amaltheia?...They were called automatons, and they were bad news.**

Hephaestus grunted in disagreement while Nico nodded. He didn’t much like the thought of agreeing with Luke on anything but he did have a point. Automatons suck.

**I wasn’t anxious to take on Robert E. Lee with a nine-iron.**

More laughter.

“I can bet who would win that fight.” Travis said, with a little too much glee for Hermes’ liking.

**Fortunately, the statue didn’t attack...The door was painted charcoal black.**

“Well that just screams ‘trap’.” Percy stated.

“And it sounds really,  _ really _ creepy.” Piper muttered.

**Even on a bright sunny morning, the place looked gloomy and creepy—like a Gone with the Wind haunted house.**

“Who wouldn’t want to go there?” Grover asked sarcastically. All of the demigods raised their hands.

**My mouth felt dry. “The goat wants us to go there?”...not just because she dispensed Pepsi products.**

Percy let out another surprised snort of laughter. Luke really was pretty funny. He had a good sense of humour and it slightly disturbed him to realise it was kind of similar to his own. He didn’t really want to think about how he and Luke were alike.

**Something was nagging at the back of my mind...When the mist dissolved, the goat was gone.**

“Well that definitely looks like something Zeus would do.” Poseidon muttered. “Ever the drama queen.”

“Shut up.” Zeus glared at his brother.

**I hadn’t even gotten to try the ice dispenser.**

“I wouldn’t want to.” Jason shuddered. “Goat dispensed ice. Yuck.”

“When you’re on the run, you learn not to be too picky about where your food and drinks come from.” Thalia told him quietly. He nodded, giving her an apologetic look. She waved this away and gave him a sideways hug. 

It was hard to hear about these days, when it was just her and Luke. She missed those times a lot and it was a bigger reminder of just how much he had changed. He’d trusted her then. Listened and followed her without argument. When she’d spoken to him on Mount Othrys, he had refused to listen. He no longer trusted her and that hurt.

**I gazed across the street at the dilapidated house...she can get me to do pretty much whatever.**

Thalia inhaled sharply. Then she closed her eyes and tried to ignore the pain. She wanted that Luke back. She’d always had a crush on him but she had never been quite certain whether her feelings were returned. At least, not in the same way.How had everything gone so wrong?

**But I couldn’t help wondering: back in Charleston, had the goat led her to me, or simply led her into a dragon’s cave?**

Thalia frowned. She hadn’t even thought of that. Was Luke right? Surely her dad could have sent the goat to lead her to Luke in a slightly less dangerous place? Of course, being a demigod on the run there were no truly safe places but she’d never given a thought to the fact that it might have been leading her to a trap.

“Amaltheia wouldn’t do that.” Zeus said firmly. “Especially if I sent her.”

“Actually, she might.” Hera muttered.

“What?” Zeus turned on his wife, expression angry.

“Well, you did kill her and skin her.” Hera reminded him.

“That would upset most people.” Percy snorted. “Or goats, I guess.”

“Amaltheia understood.” Zeus waved this away.

“Oh yes. Who doesn’t understand the person you nurtured and raised turning around to kill you?” Hades scoffed. “I don’t even recall why you did that.”

“To make Aegis.” Athena reminded him. 

“Of course. No other way to make a magical shield. Like...I don’t know, ask Hephaestus.” Poseidon rolled his eyes at his brother.

“I’m totally betting the goat is leading you to a trap.” Jason said, anxiously.

“Kind of.” Thalia admitted. “But I did also need to be there. It was important.”

**I exhaled. “Okay. Creepy mansion, here we come.”...I was hoping she’d decide to give up.**

Annabeth scoffed. “He clearly doesn’t know you that well if he thinks you’ll give up that easily.”

“I expect he knew she wouldn’t really.” Percy said. “He was just hoping.”

**Instead she looked at me expectantly...which explains why the divine jerk left my mom and never came back.**

Hermes flinched at this.

“All gods do that. It’s hardly a god of travellers thing.” Katie pointed out.

**He’s also the god of thieves...my mom’s sanity, and my chance at a decent life.**

Hermes flinched once more. He wondered what the Hades had happened to Luke’s mom. Had his leaving driven her mad as Zeus’ leaving had done to Thalia’s mother?

Chiron grimaced. He knew that what had happened to May Castellan was not truly Hermes’ fault. She was a stubborn woman who would not be stopped, much like her son. But he knew the god had since blamed himself for giving her the idea in the first place and it appeared Luke had the same idea. Even though there was no way for him to know exactly what had taken place. Not back then at least. He wasn’t sure if Hermes had told his son what happened when they met.

**Sorry, did that sound bitter?**

“Just a lot.” Connor muttered.

“Yeah. It’s not like he’s the only one who had a sucky home. Thalia didn’t become that bitter and twisted.” Travis agreed, quietly so that Thalia and Annabeth wouldn’t hear.

**Anyway, because of my dad’s godly thieving...I tapped it, turned it, and the door swung open.**

“That is so cool.” Leo said.

“Can you guys do that?” Frank asked the Hermes kids.

“I can.” Connor nodded.

“Me too.” Chris said.

“Not me.” Travis grimaced. “I missed out on the best skill.”

“That explains so much.” Piper muttered. Connor and Chris both gave her innocent smiles. She rolled her eyes.

**“That is so cool,” Thalia murmured...like the breath of a dying man.**

“Always a good welcome.” Frank muttered. 

Thalia raised an eyebrow. That was kinda prophetic. Although, she supposed Luke had written the diary after the event so he had known about Hal.

**Thalia marched through anyway...all casting a sickly yellow sheen over the room.**

“Weird but I’m guessing it’s a demigod house then.” Katie said.

“Great. A creepy demigod house. I think I’d prefer monsters.” Will grimaced.

**Two hallways led off to the left and right...crusty dried stuff that I hoped was just ketchup.**

Everybody frowned. That was pretty unlikely. 

“Maybe that means the place is empty.” Leo suggested hopefully.

“Or whatever killed the demigod is still there.” Jason said.

“I was trying to be positive.” Leo scolded him.

“And I was being realistic.”

**In one corner, a sofa had been disemboweled...cans, rags, and bones—human-sized bones.**

“Eww.” Silena wrinkled her nose.

“You should get out of there.” Percy said.

“Not a lot I can do about it now.” Thalia reminded him.

“Doesn’t that sound familiar.” Percy laughed.

**Thalia pulled her weapon from her belt...I grabbed my golf club, which wasn’t nearly as cool.**

There was a round of laughter.

“At least one of you had a proper weapon.” Hermes muttered.

**I started to say...This time nothing happened.**

“Wonderful.” Zeus muttered unhappily. After what the others had said about Amaltheia he was nervous. Obviously Thalia survived whatever happened in there but that didn’t stop him from worrying. He was also concerned that his old nurse had betrayed him. Instead of being furious as he normally would be, he just felt hurt. She had nursed him and helped raise him.

**“Some kind of magic,” I said...The curtains liquefied into sheets of oily sludge like giant black tongues.**

“That’s gross.” Silena grimaced.

“So you’re locked in and the windows are blocked by sludge monsters?” Reyna stated. “Not a good start.”

“What kind of monster is a sludge curtain?” Leo asked.

“Might not be a monster. Might be a trap. Magic or a curse or something.” Silena told him.

**They oozed up her arms and covered her spear...I charged at the drapes and whacked them with my golf club.**

Thalia smiled slightly. She really did miss the days when it was just the two of them. She had adored Annabeth, she was one of her best friends, and she had loved having her along but a part of her didn't like sharing Luke’s attention. Had it been the two of them for just a little longer, maybe he would have said something about how he felt. Things might have been different. Or maybe not. There was no way to know and it grated on her nerves. This stupid story had no right bringing up all of these feelings. Especially right after reading about how Luke had been possessed by Kronos. She cursed the Fates in her mind.

**The ooze shuddered and reverted to fabric long enough for me to pull Thalia free.**

Zeus relaxed ever so slightly.

**Her spear clattered on the floor...smoking as if it had been dipped in acid.**

“It wasn’t destroyed was it? You don’t need both of you with no weapons.” Zeus wanted to know. Obviously she had a similar spear now but had he given her a new one?

“No. It was ok. Needed cleaning but it was still usable.” Thalia smiled.

**She raised her hands. They were steaming and blistered.**

“Gods.” Annabeth breathed. 

“Luke fixed it. He had some nectar.” Thalia assured her. Annabeth nodded.

**Her face paled like she was going into shock...The steam dissipated. The blisters faded.**

“I didn’t realise he used the last of it.” Thalia frowned.

“You needed it.” Percy told her.

“Yeah. You kind of need your hands to fight.” Jason stated. She nodded, still looking unhappy.

**“You’re going to be fine,” I said. “Just rest.”...we wouldn’t have been here if not for the stupid goat.**

“At least he had the sense not to say that out loud.” Annabeth chuckled.

**I considered our options: a staircase going up...small red lights glowing near the floor. Maybe night-lights?**

“Or monster eyes.” Reyna suggested.

“More likely than night lights.” Frank nodded.

**Then the lights moved...A growl made my hair stand on end.**

“Yep. Not that hallway then.” Jason said grimly

**Thalia made a strangled sound. “Um, Luke…”...clack, clack, clack, like someone playing bone castanets.**

“Stairs it is then.” Will said.

“Going up is just going to trap them further.” Beckendorf pointed out.

“Well they can’t get out the door or the windows. Might as well check the upstairs windows. Maybe they aren’t cursed.” Travis shrugged.

**“The stairs are looking pretty good,” I said...called from somewhere above us: “Yes, this way.”**

”Not the stairs.” Percy said quickly.

**The voice was heavy with sadness, as if he were giving directions to a funeral.**

“Even more reason not to listen to him.” Travis muttered.

“There really aren’t many other options. I don’t think a golf club is going to do much to monsters.” Clarisse reminded him.

**“Who are you?” I shouted...But how could one voice come from two different places?**

“They just sound the same?” Hermes suggested.

“No. It was definitely the same voice.” Thalia said. 

Apollo stiffened. He suddenly knew exactly who was talking to the demigods. He grimaced and wondered how they had gotten out of that mess but he was glad they had. Or that Thalia had at least. The world might be a fair bit better if Luke had been killed in there.

**Then the same voice called out from the...a set of oily black man-eating draperies.**

“That’s still so weird to hear.” Leo grinned. “Even for us demigods.”

“Agreed. I can’t think of anything much stranger than that. And I’ve seen some weird stuff.” Percy nodded.

**But something about those voices echoing...I grabbed Thalia’s hand and bolted for the stairs.**

“Pretty much the only option.” Frank said.

**“Luke—”...“If it’s another trap—”**

“Even if it is, you didn’t have great chances of survival down there.” Annabeth pointed out.

  
“Yeah. I know.” Thalia sighed.

**“No choice!”**

**I bounded up the stairs, dragging Thalia with me...What in Hades were they?**

“Leucrota. Or at least that’s what they sound like.” Artemis stated, looking at her brother. She had a suspicion of what that place was. That had not been one of her brother’s finer moments and she wondered how Percy would react to hearing about this. He seemed to take quite a dim view of most godly punishments.

Apollo met his sister’s gaze and he could see his own worries reflected in her eyes. She glanced over at Percy and he grimaced. He figured Percy would not be particularly happy when he learned the truth. His kids probably weren’t going to be approving either. He could only hope they understood. He  _ had _ warned his son not to tell people about his future knowledge. Messing with Fate could not go unpunished.

**At the top of the stairs, we plunged down another hallway...accidentally kicking a human skull.**

“How many people died in that place?” Piper asked nervously.

“A lot.” Thalia told her grimly.

**Somewhere ahead of us, the man’s voice called...Maybe the creatures were just mimicking like parrots.**

“Possible. Quite a few monsters can mimic human voices.” Beckendorf nodded. 

**Or maybe the voice in front of us belonged...He sounded alone and miserable, like a hostage.**

Apollo sighed sadly. He did hate having to punish his own children. But if he hadn’t his father would likely have stepped in and done something even worse.

**“We have to help him,” Thalia announced, as if reading my thoughts.**

“Or he’s just another trap.” Percy muttered.

“You would have tried to help him too.” Thalia said, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah.” Percy admitted. “But I’m known for walking into traps. You keep claiming to be smarter than that.” He smirked.

**“Yeah,” I agreed...face-planting on the carpet.**

Percy snickered.

“Oh shut up.” Thalia glared at him.

“Like you wouldn’t have laughed if it was me.” 

“Of course I would. It’s funny when you do it.”

“Naturally.” Percy rolled his eyes.

**The door slammed shut...suit that might’ve been made from the same material.**

“Oh yuck.” Aphrodite wrinkled her nose. “He could certainly use a makeover.”

**He was tall and gaunt, with spiky gray hair almost as wild as Thalia’s. He looked like a very old, sickly, fashionably dressed Einstein.**

“Interesting.” Leo frowned.

“What’s an old guy doing in a place like that?” Jason asked suspiciously.

“Either the monsters would have eaten him or he should have died from starvation or dehydration by now.” Will agreed, frowning thoughtfully.

“I’m guessing he’s probably a monster too of some sort.” Nico said. Apollo frowned. His son was not a monster. Or he hadn’t been, until he had been made into one.

**His shoulders slumped. His sad green eyes were...face hung loose as if he’d been partially deflated.**

Apollo grimaced.

“Definitely in need of a makeover.” Aphrodite stated and then she began mumbling to herself as if planning what would be needed.

**His room was arranged like a studio apartment...one leading into a bathroom, the other into a large closet.**

“So there’s the whole mansion and he just uses that one room?” Frank wondered.

“Well there are monsters in the rest of the place.” Hazel reminded him.

“Yeah but he’s either working with the monsters or one of them, you’d have thought he could make use of the space.” Frank shrugged.

**Thalia said, “Um, Luke…”...with pointed ears, an elongated snout, and black lips that looked disturbingly human.**

“That is the most disturbing thing I’ve ever heard about.” Katie said, looking disgusted.

“Definitely a leucrota.” Ares stated. “Those are pretty rare.”

“I should hope so.” Will said. “That’s both gross and creepy.”

“And very hard to kill.” Beckendorf added, looking worried. “How on Olympus did you get out of there? Those things are damn near impossible to kill.”

“With a lot of difficulty and a fair bit of danger.” Thalia told him. Zeus’s jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. 

“How do you know that?” Pollux asked Beckendorf.

“Monster fighting class.” He shrugged.

“I’ve never heard of those things.” Connor frowned.

“Alright, so I read.” Beckendorf said defensively. “I like to know what kind of monsters Kronos might have in his army.”

“You think he might have some of those?” Thalia asked in horror.

“I doubt it, they are just something I read about while I was researching.” He assured her.

**The monster snarled. For a second...bone plates made the jarring clack, clack, clack I’d heard downstairs.**

“These things get weirder by the second.” Dakota muttered.

**The monster fixed its glowing red eyes on me...the monster spoke for him, in the voice of an old man:**

“It gets creepier by the second as well.” Hazel said.

“It was very disturbing.” Thalia confirmed.

“It’s disturbing to read about, much less to have been there.” Percy told her. “I don’t envy you.”

“I don’t envy me either.” She muttered grimly.

**“I am Halcyon Green...You’ve been lured here to die.”**

“Who apologises when luring someone to their death?” Michael frowned in confusion. Apollo closed his eyes and sighed heavily.

“I recognise that name.” Annabeth said, trying to think where she had heard the name before.

“So he’s a demigod then? If you’ve heard the name.” Connor guessed.

  
“Why would a demigod work with monsters to lure other demigods to their death?” Chris asked.

“Plenty of demigods joined Kronos and killed other demigods.” Clarisse pointed out.

  
“Yeah but that was because he promised them stuff.” Chris argued, fighting the urge to cringe. “This dude doesn’t seem to be getting anything out of this arrangement. He even apologised.”

“Maybe he’s trapped there. Maybe they keep him alive to be the bait.” Leo suggested.

**We’d left Thalia’s spear downstairs, so we had just one weapon—my golf club.**

“Just great.” Hermes groaned.

“It wouldn’t matter. Celestial bronze doesn’t hurt them.” Apollo muttered grimly. 

“And the golf club should work fine on the old guy.” Clarisse added.

**I brandished it at the old man...He looked so pitiful and depressed I couldn’t bring myself to smack him.**

Percy was having issues reconciling this version of Luke to the one who had tried to kill him several times in cold blood. Or even to the one who had fought Thalia on Mount Othrys. He just couldn’t wrap his head around it. Glancing around, he could see he wasn’t the only one struggling with this. Admittedly, a lot of the Campers had known him longer, and better, than Percy but even they seemed to have not seen this side of him. Although Percy wondered how he would have fared had Annabeth sacrificed her life to save him and Grover and been turned into a tree by the gods. Especially before he had gotten to know his dad. He could easily have turned as bitter as Luke had and that thought troubled him.

**“Y-you’d better explain,” I stammered...As you can tell, I’m good with words.**

There was a bit of snickering at this.

“He got better.” Annabeth said fondly.

“Yeah. Now he’s so smooth tongued, he can lead an army.” Travis scoffed angrily. She glared at him.

**Behind the bars, the monster clacked its...Its sympathetic tone didn’t match the homicidal glow in its eyes.**

“Seriously. How is this weirder than reading from Percy's point of view?” Rachel wanted to know.

“I’m not the weirdest.” Percy grinned, pretending to celebrate.

“Yeah you are. It’s the situation that’s completely bizarre in this instance, not the side thoughts.” Nico pointed out. Percy pouted at him.

**“The creature you see here is a leucrota...I’m hearing what he wants to say?”**

“Every time you think this couldn’t get more messed up, it proves you wrong.” Leo said.

**“That is correct.” The leucrota sighed heavily...My name is Halcyon Green, son of Apollo.”**

“What?” Will and Michael both turned to look at their dad who was grimacing. Thalia was glaring at him which didn’t help.

“Yeah. That’s my son.” Apollo said heavily.

“What the Hades happened to him?” Michael demanded.

“Hey!” Hades grumbled about his name being used as a curse word.

“I’m sure you’re going to find out.” Apollo dodged the question. Both of his kids and Percy were all looking at him warily. They assumed, correctly, that his avoidance meant he had something to do with what was going on.

**Thalia stumbled backward...Yet Halcyon Green was ancient, like sixty at least.**

Chiron and the gods all snorted in amusement at sixty being labelled ‘ancient’.

**“How long have you been here?” I asked...I should never share what I saw because it would anger the gods.**

“Why was he given the gift if he couldn’t use it?” Will frowned.

“I don’t control what gifts my children inherit.” Apollo shrugged.

“What’s the big deal?” Percy asked. “There were oracles in the olden days that told people their future all the time.” Apollo sighed.

“Those people were chosen and blessed with the gift of foresight. Hal...Hal wasn’t supposed to have the gift. He was not a designated oracle.” He glanced at Zeus. “Father didn’t want him telling people their fate and risking people changing it.” Apollo explained.

“But you can’t change your Fate.” Percy frowned. “The more you try and change it, the more you end up making it happen.”

“Only with certain things, like prophecies. Other parts of your fate can be changed if you know what will happen. And besides, not being able to change fate doesn’t stop people trying and their fate often ends up worse for the attempt.” Apollo said sadly. “Anyway, Hal chose not to heed my warning.” Will wanted to ask what had happened but he guessed it was about to come up so gestured for Piper to keep reading.

**But many years ago…I simply had to speak...I saved her life by telling her the future.”**

“He saved a girl’s life.” Percy raised an eyebrow. “Why is that a bad thing?”

“She was destined to die. It was her fate. Fate should not be messed with.” Apollo tried to explain.

“If everyone thought they could avoid their death, there would be chaos. Look at Daedalus.” Athena said. 

“He didn’t want her to live forever, he just saved a little girl’s life.” Will protested.

**I tried to focus on the old man...“They don’t like mortals meddling with fate,” the leucrota said.**

“We don’t like immortals meddling with fate either.” Zeus stated.

“Like, coming back in time to change a bunch of stuff?” Percy asked.

“This was done with the authorisation of the Fates themselves. This is different.” Apollo reminded him.

**“My father cursed me. He forced me to wear...as a reminder that I was not an oracle.**

“Gross, dad.” Michael wrinkled his nose.

**He took away my voice and locked me...forever, that my voice would only lead others to their doom.”**

“What the Hades!?” Percy exploded. Hades glowered as Apollo cringed. “Not only did you curse the dude for doing something good, you also doomed him to lure other demigods to their death? That’s just so wrong!”

“Jeez, dad. I’m with Percy. Cursing the guy was bad enough, but to make him have to lure other people to their deaths is just plain cruel. Those other demigods did nothing wrong.” Will said, disappointment clear in his voice. Michael just looked disgusted. Apollo said nothing. There really was nothing he could say that would make this better.

“Besides, the guy didn’t lead anyone to their doom until you made him. He saved the girl. He didn’t doom her.” Connor pointed out.

“Who needs enemies with allies like these.” Clarisse scowled. “Only evil people would think that saving a young girl’s life was a bad thing.”

“He was warned not to tell people. He disobeyed a direct order from the gods.” Zeus said imperiously.

“Yeah but seriously, why do all godly punishments have to bite other people in the backside too?” Percy wanted to know. “You curse people into monsters and then they go on and kill your children. Thalia could have been killed because of this punishment.” He glared at Zeus. “Annabeth was nearly turned to stone by Medusa, a monster Athena created. You never learn.”

“Percy.” Poseidon warned.

“No. I’m sick of this. I thought they were events that happened a long time ago and that you might have learnt your lesson but apparently not. This guy was cursed not that long ago.” Percy glared around at all of the gods, lingering on Apollo. “Your own son.” He said softly.

“I regret it.” Apollo said, equally softly.

“Do you?” Michael asked. “Or do you just regret that we found out and don’t approve?”

“I do regret it.” Apollo promised. “It was overly harsh of me but I knew if I didn’t do something then father would.”

“Couldn’t you just curse him like you did that Cassandra woman? He could tell anyone he liked what their future was and they wouldn’t believe him.” Silena suggested.

“So, I might not have been thinking clearly.” Apollo grumbled.

“You don’t say.” Will scowled.

“I think we should continue reading.” Hestia interrupted.

**An angry coppery taste filled my mouth...My deadbeat dad had ignored me for fourteen years.**

Hermes winced.

**But Halcyon Green’s curse was just plain wrong. It was evil.**

Now Apollo cringed once more. Being called evil by the guy now housing Kronos in his body chilled the god to his core. Of course he hadn’t thought much on how the curse would end up killing other demigods, maybe even some of his own children. He knew he often acted rashly but the disgusted look on Michael’s face and the disappointment on Percy’s were almost physically painful to witness. Especially after he had spent such an enjoyable evening and then morning with them.

**“You should fight back,” I said...Sometimes I try to help them.**

“Good for him.” Michael smiled.

“Hal’s a good guy.” Thalia nodded. Apollo winced once more. He really,  _ really _ wanted this to be over with. Why did they have to read this stupid thing anyway?

**It never works. The windows are guarded by deadly drapes—”**

“I think they noticed.” Jason scoffed.

**“I noticed,” Thalia muttered.**

He and Thalia high fived, grinning.

**“—and the door is heavily enchanted...They can’t be hurt by any metal known to man or god.”**

“So it doesn’t matter that they left Thalia’s spear downstairs then.” Reyna said gravely.

“No but if they find a way out, they’ll want the spear for the future.” Jason pointed out.

“Better to have their lives.” Beckendorf argued. Jason conceded the point.

**To prove his point, the old man brushed...glanced off the leucrota’s snout, leaving no mark.**

“Wonderful.” Percy groaned.

**The leucrota kicked its hooves at the bars...If I don’t cooperate, the monsters let me starve.**

“Better to starve to death than to keep luring innocent people to their deaths.” Percy muttered.

“I wouldn’t exactly call Luke innocent.” Rachel muttered.

“He probably meant Thalia.” Annabeth said, a little bitterly.

“I definitely wouldn’t call Thalia innocent.” Percy smirked.

“Damn right.” Thalia grinned.

**The monsters could have killed you the moment...and a shiver went down my spine.**

“You know, I’m feeling less bad for this guy by the second.” Clarisse stated.

**“You’re as bad as the monsters,” I said...I didn’t want to get killed for that.**

“I don’t blame ya.” Leo muttered.

“To be fair, you’re also being killed because the monsters want to eat you.” Connor shrugged.

“Oh because that’s so much better.” Grover said sarcastically.

**“You’re right to hate me,” the leucrota said in Hal’s voice...There is no escape.”**

“You could try not luring them up there in the first place.” Piper said.

“It was the stupid goat that lured them to the house.” Jason pointed out. Zeus scowled angrily. It appeared he needed some words with his old nurse.

**Inside the monster’s enclosure...vise grip and bit a horseshoe-shaped hole in the metal.**

“Lovely.” Rachel murmured sarcastically.

**“As you see,” said another leucrota in Hal’s voice...“If I do that, we won’t be able to talk.”**

“Because talking to you has been so helpful.” Clarisse scoffed.

**The second monster picked up...escape strategy you can think of, someone else has already tried.”**

“I wouldn’t count on that.” Annabeth smiled.

“It’s a shame we didn’t have Percy with us.” Thalia grinned. “Although that result would probably have ended up pretty similar to what we did.”

**The third monster said: “There is no point in private talks.”**

“Maybe they just don’t want to listen to the creepy voice coming out of monsters.” Leo suggested.

“Yeah. We definitely could have done without that.” Thalia nodded.

“But you also didn’t want them learning of your escape plan?” Jason asked. She nodded once more.

“But didn’t he say they are linked to his thoughts? Would they not learn about it from him anyway?” Silena wondered.

“We weren’t sure but just getting them out of the room was nice anyway.” Thalia shrugged.

**Thalia paced, as restless as the monsters...I would’ve run straight toward it.**

Annabeth and Thalia both grimaced.

**The second monster spoke for Hal...I don’t want those things staring at me all day.”**

“Can’t blame ya.” Dakota said. “They sound creepy.”

**Hal hesitated. Then he turned to the monsters...“But we’d better come up with one by sunset.”**

“That’s most of the day. Plenty of time.” Percy said with a grin.

“It didn’t feel like it.” Thalia grumbled.

**It was an odd feeling, waiting to die...The suspense was almost worse than an attack.**

The demigods in the room all nodded in agreement.

**Part of me was tempted to knock out the old man with my golf club and feed him to his drapes.**

“Do it.” Clarisse nodded.

“It wouldn’t help anything.” Travis pointed out.

“Might make him feel better.” She shrugged.

**Then at least he couldn’t help the monsters...What kind of justice was that?**

“Exactly.” Percy scowled. Apollo closed his eyes and grimaced. He doubted Percy was ever going to talk to him again, let alone still want to date him. He’d managed to screw it up before Percy had even been born.

“That doesn’t make his choices any better. He could have let himself die.” Clarisse pointed out. “Then he wouldn’t have to lure people to their death. Instead, he chose to live and to keep going without really trying to escape from the sounds of it.”

**I was still angry with Hal for luring us here...golf club across the head, it was Apollo**

Apollo grimaced once more, especially when he saw pretty much all the demigods, including Percy, seemed to agree. Maybe he should be slightly worried for his health considering he was currently mortal.

**and all the other deadbeat parent Olympian gods, for that matter.**

Now all the other gods shuffled in their seats uncomfortably.

**We took inventory of Hal’s prison apartment...We could order pizza and watch the monsters eat the delivery guy.**

“Nice.” Leo muttered sarcastically.

“He didn’t mean it seriously.” Thalia rolled her eyes. “Not back then, anyway.” She added sadly.

**Not very helpful. I suppose we could’ve e-mailed...He had two spare sets of snakeskin clothes,**

“At least you were nice enough to give him a change of clothes.” Will muttered scathingly.

**apparently just hand-washed, hanging from...Did the other demigods come here because of the goat?”**

“Unlikely. Most other people would have probably had the same instinct as Luke. Don’t follow the radioactive goat.” Percy said.

“You only followed because you thought it was a sign from your dad.” Annabeth reminded her.

“It  _ was _ a sign from my dad.” Thalia said quietly. Annabeth raised an eyebrow. Why would Zeus send his daughter there?

**Hal frowned. He motioned for us to follow...Zeus’s glowing Pepsi-dispensing goat into Richmond,**

“That’s even better than the pink poodle.” Connor snickered.

**and how she had pointed us to this house...“Treasure?” Thalia asked.**

“Treasure?” Travis perked up.

“Already gone. And not worth it.” Thalia told him. He and Connor both pouted.

**Hal got up and showed us his walk-in closet...I needed another sword.**

“Wouldn’t do much good.” Leo frowned.

“No but he would need one if they got out of there.” Beckendorf reminded him.

**Hal rearranged boxes of books...two-foot-square metal floor safe and gestured at it like: Ta-da.**

“He ignored a basket full of diamonds and some gold bars?” Connor actually looked like he was in pain at the very thought.

“It’s not like he can do anything with them.” Annabeth rolled her eyes.

“No but Thalia and Luke could use them if they got out.” Travis pointed out.

“What I want to know is what he considers more valuable than that stuff.” Piper said.

**“Can you open it?” I asked...Again, Hal shook his head.**

“Well how does he know it’s treasure then?” Chris frowned.

**“It’s trapped,” I guessed.**

“That’s probably why he thinks it’s treasure.” Katie guessed.

“Might just be a way of fooling him into thinking it’s treasure so he’ll open it and spring the trap.” Percy muttered.

  
“Who would do that and why?” Rachel wondered.

“Maybe the gods thought it would be funny.” He muttered darkly. Some of the gods shot him affronted looks but nobody actually argued with him.

**Hal nodded emphatically, then traced a finger across his neck...“Whatever’s inside must be important.”**

“That’s still really cool. And useful.” Leo said, looking jealous.

“Can’t you do something similar?” Piper asked.

“Maybe.” Leo replied. “With mechanical locks. Not sure I’d be able to sense all the traps though.”

**Thalia knelt next to me...Zeus hadn’t treated her any better than Hermes treated me.**

Zeus glared at the book. Of course he looked out for his daughter!

**Besides, a lot of demigods had been led here. All of them were dead.**

”That’s a pretty good point.” Frank said.

“Yeah, nobody would go into such a creepy looking house unless they were led there by something.” Connor agreed.

**Still, she fixed me with those intense blue eyes, and I knew this was another time Thalia would get her way.**

Thalia smiled again sadly. She knew that it had been important to get her way this time. That shield had saved her life so many times. Luke’s and Annabeth’s too.

**I sighed. “You’re going to ask me to open it, aren’t you?”...I should choose someone I didn’t like so much.**

“Well done on that front.” Travis snorted.

**I just couldn’t say no to Thalia.**

“Can’t say no to Kronos either.” Chris said scathingly.

“Did you just compare me to Kronos?” Thalia asked threateningly.

“Er...no?” Chris squeaked. “I mean, you know you have those ‘startling blue’ eyes and Kronos’ are golden.”

“ _ That’s _ the difference you’re going with?” Connor hissed at his half brother.

“Given the way she’s glaring at me, I’d say she’s just as scary.” Chris hissed back.

“Try the fact that she’s  _ less evil _ !” Travis whispered, rolling his eyes. Thalia was now glaring at all of them.

“I’m going to remember that.” She said evenly. Chris shuddered.

**“People have tried to open this before,” I warned...whoever touches it gets burned to a pile of ashes.”**

“Delightful.” Triton muttered grimly.

“Effective deterrent anyway.” Rachel said.

**I looked up at Hal. His face turned as gray as his hair...“But it’s the second trap I’m worried about.”**

“Because one deadly trap isn’t enough for one small box.” Percy sighed.

“Of course not. I’d have at least three.” Leo said, looking like he was planning exactly what those three traps would be.

“Why?” Piper asked.

“Because I’ve just learnt that those guys love thieving and are real good with traps.” He stated.

“Don’t feel obliged on our accounts.” Connor grinned.

**“The second trap?” she asked...It’s never been activated.”**

“Let’s keep it that way.” Hermes breathed.

**Judging from Hal’s wide eyes...this whole apartment is going to fill with gas. We’ll die.”**

“Don’t mess up.” Percy advised.

“He won’t.” Travis said. “Luke was a natural at disabling traps, the best in the cabin. I’m willing to bet he was damn good even without training.” Hermes smiled slightly.

**Thalia swallowed. “I trust you. Just…don’t mess up.”...It might protect you.”**

Annabeth, Thalia and Grover all smiled. The reminder of who Luke used to be was very bittersweet. On one hand it was proof that Luke hadn’t always been twisted and evil. He had been a good guy, even if he was a little bitter. All demigods were a little bitter. However it was also a painful reminder of how far he had fallen. Of how much Kronos had corrupted him.

“Wow. He’s looking out for the guy that lured them to their death.” Jason frowned.

“He should have hit him with the golf club.” Octavian scoffed.

**Hal shifted uneasily. The snakeskin fabric...idea of cowering in a bathtub while two kids risked their lives.**

“That is pretty pathetic.” Clarisse muttered.

**Or maybe there was a little demigod spirit left in him after all. He gestured at the safe like: Go ahead.**

Apollo smiled slightly. It seemed that no matter what had been done to him, his son had still retained his goodness.

**I touched the combination lock...with my fingertips and extracted an unbroken vial of green liquid.**

Some people actually cheered. Then they cut themselves off, looking very confused. Since the end of the first book, they could never have imagined cheering for Luke. 

“Good. At least you won’t be dying of poison.” Percy grinned.

“Obviously I don’t die of anything during this event.” Thalia rolled her eyes.

**Hal exhaled...shouldn’t have done while I was holding a tube of deadly poison.**

Annabeth frowned. It was just hitting her how much of a crush Luke had had on Thalia. Which meant he had almost definitely never seen her as anything more than a little sister. And honestly, it made her feel a little strange. Luke and Thalia had liked each other. It was definitely mutual and that realisation made her world tilt slightly on its axis.

**“You are so good,” she said.**

**Did that make the risk worth it? Yeah, pretty much.**

Thalia grinned, unable to help herself. Artemis watched her Lieutenant warily. It was very clear that she was not over this boy yet, despite joining her Hunt. While she didn’t fear anything between Thalia and Luke from her time, given he was inhabited by Kronos, she worried that these recurring feelings would make her reconsider her place in the Hunt. 

**I looked into the safe, and some of my enthusiasm faded…just a row of polished silver links.**

Everyone turned to look at Thalia, their eyes drawn to the silver bracelet sitting on her wrist.

“So the goat led you to Aegis?” Annabeth asked, intrigued.

“Yes.” Thalia nodded. Zeus smiled, feeling pleased. Amaltheia was not a traitor. She had not turned against him.

“Nice of it to warn you about the trap too.” Percy muttered. “I’m glad you just let Chiron hand me Riptide.” He added, looking at his dad. Poseidon grinned.

Apollo was staring at Thalia. He remembered that he had told Hal his curse would be broken when the owner of the bracelet claimed it. His son’s curse would be broken but Apollo suspected it wouldn’t have a happy ending. He desperately hoped Hal would make it Elysium. That whatever cost him his life was a good enough redemption for what he had been forced to do. Because sadly, the Underworld judges wouldn’t care that he had been cursed, they would care that he had chosen to work with the curse and lure people to their death to survive himself.

**Thalia latched it around her wrist...flies when you’re waiting to die, but it was already past noon.**

“I suspect it’s time flying while waiting to die. I didn’t make time move any differently in the house.” Apollo said quietly.

“Yeah, being a demigod messes with time almost as well as being in a monstrous place like the Labyrinth.” Beckendorf shrugged.

**Our day was half over...end when the owner of the treasure claimed it!!**

“At least his curse had an ending.” Katie said softly. “That’s more than most godly curses.”

“Yeah. Unless the ending is death.” Percy stated grimly. “They still have those creatures to deal with and the man eating curtains. And no way to kill them.”

**If you’re the owner—...How could I be the owner?**

“Because you’re the daughter of Zeus.” Athena stated.

“Wait, but when you set that curse, the pact had been made. Zeus wasn’t supposed to have any more children.” Will pointed out with a frown.

“Athena also helped to make the shield. It could just have easily belonged to one of her children. I could see that someone would claim the bracelet but when I told him that I didn’t know who it would be or when they would come.” Apollo informed him.

**And if your curse is supposed to end now...from the hallway answered that question.**

“What? Why aren’t they gone if the curse is broken?” Michael looked at his father accusingly.

“Maybe he meant that he wouldn’t have to lure the owner to their death. That person would escape, which would end his curse.” Percy suggested.

“Maybe.” Beckendorf nodded. “That does make some kind of sense. It’s not like the gods ever give us the simple option.”

**I frowned at Hal. “Do you have your voice back?”...meant we’re going to rescue you,” Thalia said.**

Apollo wished that was going to be the outcome but given the way the diary had started, he was fairly certain Hal was going to die.

**Hal typed a new sentence: Or maybe I die today.**

“That would end his curse.” Clarisse nodded.

**“Thank you, Mr. Cheerful,” I said...I tried to use my powers.**

“Wait? He has to actually try to use his powers? I thought he had just had a random vision or something. Well then all he had to do was not look. Not use them.” Silena frowned.

“You know it’s not necessarily that easy.” Percy said. “Especially when he was younger. He might not have had control over it all the time. Maybe he did just get an accidental vision that he couldn’t ignore.” 

**“Sure,” I grumbled. “Don’t take the risk. You might mess up this nice life you’ve got here.”**

A few people snickered.

“Luke’s got a point.” Connor said, pulling a face as he did so. “It’s not like his life could get much worse.”

“Saying things like that is just challenging the gods to get even more cruel and creative.” Michael muttered. Some of the gods frowned, unhappy with that assessment while a couple of the others seemed to be considering exactly how they could make the curse worse.

**I knew that was mean. But the old man’s cowardice...Thalia and I became the leucrotae’s next meal.**

“Sounds like as good a time as any.” Percy grinned.

**Hal lowered his head. His chest was shaking...the monsters can’t be hurt by any metal.**

“Special power doesn’t always have to mean weapon.” Leo said. After all he got by on his first quest, his only one so far, without a weapon.

“Very true.” Annabeth nodded approvingly.

“True but a weapon they could use would be pretty useful right then.” Beckendorf pointed out.

“Maybe the Medusa face on Aegis can keep them at bay long enough for you guys to escape?” Suggested Grover.

“The front door is still locked, I’m guessing. Plus the curtains that eat you.” Jason reminded them.

**Thalia turned to me with a silent plea in her eyes... it would kill everyone in the room as soon as it dispersed.**

“That’s definitely a bad idea.” Connor muttered. 

“Well didn’t the monsters go off into a different room? Throw the can in there.” Dakota suggested. 

“It wasn’t secure. Some gas might have come into the room we were in.” Thalia said.

**I ran through another dozen ideas in my head...Maybe that meant he had some power over the Internet.**

“Not really. I may have invented it but that thing has a mind of its own.” Hermes stated.

**I could really use a divine Google hit right about now...Show me there’s an upside to being your son.”**

Hermes frowned. He really wished he could help.

**“What, Luke?” Thalia asked...I doubted we could kill monsters with low-resolution JPEGs.**

“Now that would be interesting.” Rachel laughed.

“It would definitely be worth seeing.” Grover agreed.

**I typed in a list of things we had in the room...would pop up for a leucrota death ray.**

“Even if there was such a formula, doubt it would involve those ingredients.” Annabeth laughed.

“Maybe celestial bronze and poison. Not sure what the golf club and the snickers are going to do.” Beckendorf said.

**No such luck. I typed in “Help me kill leucrotae.” The closest hit I got was Help me cure leukemia.**

“Not quite the same thing.” Silena chuckled.

**My head was throbbing. I didn’t have any concept...All of them had ideas for escape. All of them failed.**

“Yeah but they weren’t you two.” Grover grinned.

**I couldn’t let that happen...but Apollo can’t punish me any worse than he already has.**

Apollo winced. He had hoped to go the rest of the story without mentioning his part in all of this again.

“He probably wouldn’t punish him for helping Zeus’ daughter anyway. Plus his curse was supposed to be broken.” Michael said, throwing his dad a sideways look. Apollo nodded. Both of those things were true.

**Perhaps I’ll see something that will help you...He looked up at Thalia with an expression of sympathy.**

“That doesn’t look promising.” Jason frowned.

“To be fair, I was going to almost die and be turned into a tree less than a year after this.” Thalia reminded him.

**He turned to the keyboard and hesitated...You are destined to survive today, Hal typed.**

“Well that’s a start.” Percy said.

**“That’s—that’s good, right?” she asked...You will change once, and then change again.**

“So I sacrificed my life for my friends. Got turned into a tree, awake but sleeping. I changed back to a demigod and then changed once more into a Hunter.” Thalia frowned, deep in thought.

“Wow, this dude is pretty accurate.” Will whistled.

**Your path will be sad and lonely. But someday you will find your family again.**

“You found me again.” Jason smiled.

“Yeah. I did.” Thalia grinned, giving him a hug.

**Thalia clenched her fists...Changing, sleeping? You call that a future?**

“To be honest, it turned out a lot better than it first sounded.” Thalia smiled, glancing around the room.

“That’s not too hard. It sounded pretty grim. And weird.” Annabeth said.

“It has been pretty weird.” Thalia laughed.

  
“Such is the life of the demigod.” Percy sighed.

**I—I don’t even have a family. Just my mom...but she’d told me she was an only child,**

Thalia grimaced. That was the only lie she had ever told Luke. It was something too painful to share, even with him. 

**and she’d never mentioned any relatives...Hal’s fortune-telling skills are rusty.”**

“Fortune tellings skills don’t get  _ rusty _ .” Apollo grumbled. Everyone ignored him.

**I’m pretty sure not even Thalia believed that.**

“Nobody would believe that.” Michael laughed.

“Somebody might.” Leo grinned.

**“Hal,” I said, “there’s got to be more...Zeus slew her and used her skin to make his shield—the aegis.**

“Lovely way to repay her.” Poseidon rolled his eyes.

“I can’t believe he killed his own wet nurse and skinned her.” Katie muttered.

**I scratched my chin. I was pretty sure that was...Typical god thing to do.**

“That’s not…” Apollo began.

“You don’t get to say anything. You might not have killed your wet nurse but your cursed your own son for saving someone’s life.” Percy glared at him.

“Maybe dad had the right idea.” Ares muttered, glaring at Hera. She glowered right back.

**Thalia, you know anything about the shield?”...In fact, I might have a vendetta against Zeus’s children.**

“That sounds like a reasonable idea.” Travis said.

“But why would she lead them to the shield?” Jason wanted to know.

“Well, she did seem upset when Luke appeared in the beginning. It was like the goat wanted Thalia to go alone. Maybe she knew the shield would make good bait and figured a lone demigod was very unlikely to live long enough to collect it.” Nico said, thinking back.

**Maybe that’s why Amaltheia had brought us to the mansion...I couldn’t bear that.**

Annabeth and Thalia both grimaced. It had been Thalia’s death that seemed to have triggered Luke’s downward spiral. And a part of Thalia couldn’t blame him. If Luke had been the one who died and got turned into a tree, she might well have grown to despise the gods. Admittedly she had never hated Zeus the way Luke had hated Hermes but she might well have grown to. 

**“Don’t, Luke,” Thalia said bitterly...He yanked his hands away and stared at me in terror.**

“Three guesses what he saw.” Travis muttered.

“You might need more than that. He’s done a lot of things that would make someone look terrified.” Connor told him.

**“Okay,” I said. My tongue felt like sandpaper...Hal looked up miserably. He nodded.**

“I see why you said the solution was quite similar to what it would have been if Percy was there. It’s going to be destructive.” Rachel laughed.

“Set fire to the drapes maybe?” Silena guessed.

“Or the monsters.” Beckendorf offered.

“Regular fire probably won’t hurt them and they don’t have any Greek fire.” Leo pointed out.

**“There’s more,” I pressed…I also saw a sacrifice in your future. A choice. But also a betrayal.**

“A sacrifice? Does he mean Thalia’s sacrifice for him or his sacrifice of his body to Kronos? That was more of a choice. Maybe that’s what Hal meant.” Chris wondered.

“Only one betrayal? But there are so many to choose from.” Grover muttered.

**I waited. Hal didn’t elaborate...Because Luke would never betray anyone.”**

The Hermes kids all snorted but it was not a sound of amusement.

“Oh no. Never. Except his friends, family and pretty much everyone who ever cared for him.” Travis scowled.

**Hal typed, His path is hard to see...then you take away their hope with your horrible predictions?**

“No. I suspect you’re the first ones he’s looked into the future for since his curse.” Apollo said. “He wouldn’t risk it.”

“I still didn’t want to hear what he was saying.” Thalia snapped.

“Nobody blames you for that.” Annabeth said. “I wouldn’t have wanted to listen either.”

**No wonder the others gave up...I didn’t want to know what he saw in his visions.**

“Knowing the future can suck. Especially when you don’t know what it means.” Will said.

“Yeah. Hopefully these books will give us a nice, clear future.” Percy said. “I’m sick of prophecies.” Apollo pouted.

**Whatever nightmares were in my future...But I thought that stuff was just a legend.”**

“Are you two going to try and make Greek fire?” Beckendorf asked in astonishment. “With no proper equipment?”

“We didn’t have many options.” Thalia shrugged.

“That’s worse than pretty much all of Percy’s ideas and that’s saying something.” Triton said, mouth slightly open.

**“I don’t know,” I admitted. “If it’s real, how do we make it? There’s no recipe here.”**

“There’s a reason for that.” Hephaestus grunted. “It’s not stuff to be made lightly.”

“We weren’t making it lightly.” Thalia said. “We didn’t have any other weapon.”

**Hal rapped his knuckles on the desk to get our attention...“This is it. The recipe for Greek fire.”**

“That needs to be destroyed.” Zeus decreed. “We cannot have a recipe for Greek fire lying around.”

“Agreed.” Hephaestus nodded.

**How had I known to search for it?...since he’s got a way with potions and alchemy.**

Hermes smiled. He certainly hoped he had been helping. Even if Luke didn’t recognise him for it.

**Perhaps I’d seen the recipe somewhere before...I don’t want to be responsible for burning down the mortal world.**

“Well, I sense some great irony here.” Beckendorf muttered.

“At least he was sensible enough to not write down the recipe.” Hermes grinned. “Smart boy.”

**I read to the end of the list...I looked at Thalia. “We need lightning.”**

“Well, you’ve got the right person.” Jason grinned.

“Unless she over does it and blows them up.” Percy smirked.

“Well obviously that didn’t happen.” Thalia rolled her eyes.

**Her eyes widened. “Luke, I can’t. Last time—”...neck stood up as I remembered that accident.**

“What happened?” Hermes asked.

“Long story.” Thalia said with a grimace. “No need to tell it now.”

**“It’ll be fine.” I tried to sound confident...“And set the house on fire,” Thalia added.**

“I think that’s a given considering what you’re making.” Beckendorf pointed out.

**Hal typed, You’ll do that anyway if you succeed...“Please tell me the monsters aren’t immune to fire.”**

“No. They aren’t.” Apollo stated.

“Good. Otherwise that would have gotten really messy.” Percy muttered.

“It was messy anyway.” Thalia shuddered slightly.

**Hal knit his eyebrows. I don’t think so, he typed...there was no way all three of us could get out alive.**

Apollo closed his eyes. They obviously knew which person was not getting out alive and he had already known for some time. That didn’t make it easier to hear. 

**“Let’s make the Greek fire,” I said...We started Hal’s stovetop and did some extremely dangerous cooking.**

“I can’t believe you’re making Greek fire with a stovetop in some old guy’s mansion with no safety equipment or anything.” The whole idea made Beckendorf cringe.

“We tried not to think too hard about it.” Thalia shrugged.

“That’s the easiest way to get through stupid plans.” Percy nodded knowingly. “Don’t think about it.”

**Time passed too quickly. Outside in the hallway...But one thing was clear: My future terrified him.**

Hermes sighed. His son’s future terrified him too. But this diary gave him hope. And he desperately needed some of that right now.

**I tried to focus on my work...Or maybe I just got lucky.**

“I’m pretty sure there was some godly involvement with that.” Beckendorf said.

“Agreed.” Annabeth nodded. Hermes smiled. 

**Finally I had a pot full of goopy black gunk...in case…you know, I explode or something.”**

“I’d be more worried about you exploding them.” Percy told her. “Given your habit of zapping people.”

“But I do that on purpose when you annoy me and I have much more control over my powers now. Back then, not so much.” She admitted.

**She grabbed a screwdriver from Hal’s...I think it might help you.**

“That would be really useful.” Katie said.

“Given that he’s not supposed to share his predictions, I don’t think it would end well, Luke keeping that.” Nico stated.

“Well, Hal’s probably about to die and Hermes wouldn’t let anyone curse Luke.” Chris shrugged, only a tiny amount of bitterness in his voice.

“No but the diary might just randomly disappear or burn up or something. At the bare minimum.” Percy guessed. He couldn’t imagine the gods letting them keep something with that much future knowledge in it.

**I shook my head. “Hal, this is yours. Keep it.”...Sometimes the future really is better left a mystery.**

Apollo smiled faintly. At least his son had understood in the end.

“If that’s the case you probably shouldn’t be giving Luke the book with your predictions in it.” Triton pointed out.

**“Hal, your father was a jerk. You didn’t deserve—”...Celestial bronze dagger from his belt. He offered it to me.**

Annabeth’s eyes widened. Was that her dagger? If this was right before they met, Luke didn’t have any other weapons. So he couldn’t have another dagger he had given her. 

**“I can’t,” I told him. “I mean, I appreciate it...She promised me it would always protect its owner.**

Annabeth let out a shaky breath. She wondered if that was true. It would explain how she had gotten out of a lot of situations she never thought she would. And Luke had given it to her. Even if he wasn’t a dagger kind of guy, something like that was very useful to a demigod, especially one on the run.

Thalia smiled as she realised exactly where her dagger had come from. They had never told her this story before so Annabeth had always thought it was just Luke’s regular knife. He had cared about both of them and tried to protect them any way he could.

**Hal took a shaky breath...it can be an excellent weapon in the right hands.**

“It certainly can.” Percy nodded, glancing at Annabeth. 

Piper looked down at her own dagger. She’d never really bothered using it for fighting, just for the visions it gave her. Maybe Annabeth could teach her? If they were going on the Argo II to the Roman camp, it might be better if she could defend herself with more than her voice.

**I’ll feel better knowing you have it...It’s the only way you’ll have time.**

“He’s right.” Beckendorf said heavily. “Otherwise you’ll kill yourselves as well as the monsters.”

“Hal’s finally found his bravery again.” Michael smiled slightly. He really wasn’t sure how to feel about this half brother of his. On one hand he had been cursed for trying to do something good which wasn’t his fault but then he had worked with the curse and lured loads of demigods to their deaths. At least he was making the right choice this time. 

**“No,” I said...He looked like a demigod, ready to go out fighting.**

All of the demigods smiled sadly. They all knew that look as they had seen it far too often in recent times.

“Good for Hal.” Chris said.

**I couldn’t believe he was offering to sacrifice...and closed the book. “Yeah. I promise.”**

“Well he kept that promise.” Katie said.

“Yeah. I wonder if he wrote about other stuff.” Silena frowned. 

“Gods I hope not.” Thalia muttered. Relieving this event was bad enough. She didn’t wish to recount any more memories of when they were on the run and after that Luke would be writing about serving Kronos. 

**Thunder shook the house...The wall behind her was blistered and blackened.**

“A little over enthusiastic.” Jason told his sister with a grin.

“That was pretty controlled.” She shrugged. “I didn’t actually set fire to anything, except the Greek fire which was the whole point.”

**The electrical outlet had completely melted...We were out of time.**

“And you complain about me cutting it close.” Percy laughed.

“You do cut it close.” Rachel pointed out.

“And now I’m not the only one.” He smirked. Thalia rolled her eyes.

**The old man held out his hand...“He’s going to help us escape.”**

Apollo and his kids all grimaced unhappily.

**As the meaning of my words dawned on her...Then I pulled Thalia into the closet with me.**

Zeus nodded approvingly. 

**A split second later, we heard the leucrotae...trapped in the bathroom! Come on, you ugly mutts!”**

“If they speak for him doesn’t that mean they are insulting themselves?” Leo asked with a grin.

“Kind of?” Piper frowned.

**It was strange hearing a leucrota insult itself...wedging it open with my golf club.**

“Hey the golf club finally came in useful.” Travis stated with a grin.

“Still should have hit the guy at least once. For all the other demigods.” Clarisse muttered.

“He sacrificed himself for Luke and Thalia.” Chris pointed out. “Cut the guy a break.”

**“Go, go, go!” I yelled...you Tartarus scum dogs? This is your last meal!”**

“Greek fire. Lovely last meal.” Beckendorf muttered with a grimace.

**The leucrota landed on me. I twisted, screaming, as its bony mouth snapped at the air where my face had just been.**

Hermes winced.

**I managed to punch its snout...I heard Halcyon Green, shouting a battle cry: “For Apollo!”**

Apollo choked. After everything he had done, his son still used his name as a battle cry instead of a curse. That was...more than he deserved. By a long way. But it also gave him hope that Percy and his other kids might forgive him too. 

**And the mansion shook with a massive explosion...when the leucrota pounced, knocking me flat on my back.**

“Oh that’s not good. One survived.” Jason said grimly.

“How did it survive?” Leo wanted to know.

“I guess that’s the one that jumped on Luke. It must have been far enough away to survive the first blast. Then it outran the fire that’s spreading.” Percy guessed.

“How did it escape the bedroom though? The panel closed.” Piper frowned.

“Didn’t it say the door was blown apart? That’s probably how.” Triton put in.

**It must have been the one that followed us...it didn’t look like it had enjoyed the experience.**

“I wonder why.” Rachel muttered sarcastically.

**Its red fur was singed black...flash of metal caught my eye—the silver bracelet.**

“Good time to work out how to use the shield.” Connor nodded.

“Not likely to be a better one.” Travis agreed.

“How about when we were in our safe house not being attacked by monsters?” Thalia asked.

“Too boring.” Percy laughed.

**Something finally clicked in my mind...snaky hair, glaring eyes, and a mouth with bared fangs.**

Percy and Annabeth both grimaced.

**Thalia thrust the shield toward the leucrota...which turned into glistening black tongues and engulfed the monster.**

“Seriously?” Percy laughed. “Celestial bronze can’t hurt that thing but man eating curtains win?” 

“Man eating curtains beat everything.” Leo grinned.

**The monster steamed. It began yelling...Thalia grabbed my arm and yelled, “Hurry!”**

“Should have left him there.” Zeus muttered to himself. Hera nodded in agreement.

**We bolted for the front door...shockwave blasted the front door open and pushed us outside.**

“Most likely.” Beckendorf nodded.

“At least the building exploded before the fire killed them.” Reyna said.

“That’s a new one. Being glad the building exploded. How come that never happens when I destroy buildings?” Percy complained.

“Because I’m more awesome than you.” Thalia grinned.

“You wish.”

“I don’t need to wish, it’s true.”

“Rubbish.”

“Ok you two. Enough.” Annabeth cut into their argument. “Let’s keep reading.”

**The next thing I knew, I was sprawled in the traffic circle... I was cowering behind the statue of Robert E. Lee.**

Everybody laughed. 

**Yeah, I know. It sounds comical now...she said. “Why did he save us?”**

“Because he was a hero.” Will stated quietly. Michael and Percy were glaring at Apollo as if daring him to argue.

“Yeah. He was.” The god agreed with his son.

**I hugged my knapsack. I felt the diary and bronze dagger...Yet he’d chosen to go out a hero.**

“And you chose to work for Kronos. Good to see you didn’t learn anything from him.” Connor muttered.

**I felt guilty that I couldn’t save the old man...The sound of sirens brought me to my senses.**

”And that’s the cue to leave.” Leo said.

**Being runaway minors, Thalia and I had learned...We had no plan, no glowing goat to follow anymore.**

“That’s probably for the best.” Percy muttered. “Given the trouble it got you into last time.”

  
“We needed to go there. We got Aegis.” Thalia pointed out. She didn’t add that they also got Annabeth’s knife.

“True but that doesn’t mean you need to go finding more trouble just yet. Give it a day or so.” Percy grinned.

**We were bone tired, but neither of us felt...If the gods ever treat me that badly, I will fight back.**

“Oh, of course that’s the lesson he learnt.” Travis muttered.

“It’s not altogether a bad lesson.” Percy pointed out. “What Apollo did to Hal was wrong. And cruel. I don’t think we should just sit back and accept that kind of treatment but at the same time obviously raising Kronos is not the way to go about it.” All of the gods gave him wary looks at that. 

“Percy.” Poseidon said, warning in his tone.

“No dad. I said I don’t want the gods dead or anything but you guys are far from perfect.” Percy stated. “And I don’t think we should be cursed or vaporized for pointing that out and standing up for ourselves. Being gods doesn't make you right all the time.” Now most of the gods looked downright angry but Poseidon, Apollo and Hermes all looked thoughtful. A little unhappy, but thoughtful.

**Okay, I know that sounds like crazy talk...They can come down here and tell me to my face.**

“Maybe if they had we wouldn’t be in the mess we are in.” Connor muttered.

**We stopped for a rest near an old warehouse...RICHMOND IRON WORKS. Most of the windows were broken.**

Annabeth looked up. 

“That’s where I met you guys.”

  
“Yeah.” Thalia nodded.

“When you said we met right after you really meant it.” Annabeth smiled slightly. Thalia nodded again.

**Thalia shivered. “We could head to our old camp,”...Amaltheia had wanted Thalia to claim it.**

“It certainly helped out an awful lot.” Thalia nodded.

“As it should.” Zeus said with a smile.

**We crept along the wall of the warehouse...A hammer hurtled straight at my face.**

A few people snickered.

**Things could’ve gone very wrong...dodged the hammer, then grabbed the little girl’s wrist.**

“Aww.” Connor sighed. “You couldn’t have even got one little hit in.” He looked at Annabeth.

“That was not going to be a  _ little _ hit.” Thalia laughed. “She would have taken his head off.”

**The hammer went skidding across the pavement...kicking me in the legs. “Go away!”**

There was more laughter. 

“It seems some things never change.” Percy smirked. “Always so violent.”

“I’ll show you violent.” Annabeth muttered darkly. He stopped smirking and gulped nervously.

**“It’s okay!” I tried my best to hold her...“Hey, little girl,” she said, sounding more gentle than I’d ever heard.**

Annabeth punched Thalia in the shoulder.

“Hey! What was that for?” 

“Calling me ‘little girl’.”

“You were  _ seven _ . You were a little girl.” Thalia argued. Annabeth hit her again and Thalia glared.

**“It’s all right. We’re not going to hurt you...“Monsters!” she wailed.**

“Not yet.” Travis muttered bitterly to himself.

**“No,” I promised. The poor thing wasn’t fighting...Her ribs were bony under her flannel pajamas.**

Athena glanced worriedly at her daughter.

**I wondered how long this little girl had gone without eating.**

Now Connor was also throwing the daughter of Athena concerned looks.

“How long were you on the run for before you met Thalia and Luke?” He asked. They had all assumed she met them pretty soon after running away.

“A few months.”

“You were on the street, alone, with only a hammer for several months at seven years old?” Reyna asked in astonishment. 

“That’s incredible. And awful.” Connor said. “You’re so brave and amazing.” He looked at her in awe.

**She was even younger than I had been when...They were startlingly gray, beautiful and intelligent.**

Annabeth smiled slightly, going a little red.

**A demigod—no doubt about it. I got the feeling she was powerful—or she would be, if she survived.**

“He got that right.” Percy said.

“Most definitely.” Connor agreed. All th Greek demigods were nodding.

**“You’re like me?” she asked, still suspicious...“My family hates me. They don’t want me. I ran away.”**

Athena sighed sadly while Annabeth grimaced at her younger self’s words. 

**My heart felt like it was cracking into pieces...but it was pretty, and it seemed to fit her.**

Annabeth went even redder.

**“Nice name,” I told her. “I tell you what, Annabeth...Now fate had given us the chance to save another little girl.**

“That’s pretty cool.” Connor said.

“Yeah.” Reyna agreed. 

“I’m glad we found you.” Thalia told Annabeth.

“Me too.” She smiled in return.

**“How’d you like a real monster-slaying weapon?”...Annabeth could use a weapon.**

“Definitely. It would be more dangerous being on the run without a weapon.” Jason stated.

**“Knives are only for the bravest and quickest fighters,”...I have a feeling you’re pretty clever.”**

“He was pretty good with kids.” Hermes noted. Annabeth glared.

“Yeah. He was.” Chris nodded, looking sad. “Luke always was the best with the younger kids in the cabin.”

**Annabeth beamed at me, and for that instant...I would never let this girl come to harm.**

“How’d that work out for him?” Connor growled. 

Annabeth’s pleasure at Luke’s compliments faded immediately. He had said as much to her many times but to hear those words, in his diary from his own point of view burned so much she wanted to cry. He had broken his promise, the internal and his vocal one. And that was a promise she had never thought he would break.

**“I am clever!” she said...The gods were harsh and cruel and aloof. Demigods had only each other.**

“No. My mom guided me in those months before I found them.” Annabeth told the group at large.

“Probably a good thing you didn’t mention that to Luke.” Thalia said.

“I didn’t know then. I didn’t realise until later.”

**I put my hand on Annabeth’s shoulder...I’m not going to fail you like our families did us. Deal?”**

I like how he promised individually. He didn’t promise Thalia wouldn’t let her down either.” Travis pointed out.

“And yet Thalia was the one who didn’t.” Connor stated.

**“Deal!” she said happily, clutching her new dagger.**

Annabeth hugged her dagger to her with a sad expression.

**Thalia picked up her spear...There’s something dark in my future.**

“As dark as it gets.” Connor said.

**It may be a long way off...I just hope I have the strength to take care of my friends.**

“He did.” Thalia whispered. He had looked after them really well. 

“Yeah. He really did.” Annabeth agreed.

**Looking at Thalia and Annabeth asleep by the fire...I’ve got to be worthy of their trust.**

Thalia and Annabeth both made pained noises like someone had punched them into a stomach. 

“He already was.” Thalia said to herself. “I trusted him with my life.”

**None of us has had good luck with our dads. I have to be better than that.**

Annabeth closed her eyes. He had been better than that. For a while. Luke had been an amazing dad figure while they were on the run. He had looked out for them, protected them and made her feel more special than her family ever had. It was so hard to believe he had been twisted enough that he could order her death. Even if he knew there was a decent chance of her escaping, the fact that he could say those words, burned. Even more so when contrasted to hearing his own words about how he wanted to be better.

Hermes sighed sadly. His son may have hated his guts for almost his entire life but he had been  _ good _ . Luke had wanted to help strangers, even when they tried to kill him, and protect stray demigods. Then he had become what he was at the end of the last book. The knowledge simultaneously healed his heart and broke it all over again.

**I may be only fourteen, but that’s no excuse...She was in such a bad state of mind when I left.…**

The god of thieves really wanted to know what had happened to Luke’s mom.

**But I can’t feel guilty about leaving her. I had to. If I ever meet my dad, we’re going to have a conversation about that.**

He still didn’t know if it was his leaving that had made her insane or if something else had happened that Luke blamed him for.

**For now, I’ll just have to survive day to day...I’d better sleep, and hope for no dreams.**

“Demigods aren’t usually that lucky.” Percy grimaced.

“Luke did seem to have less demigod dreams than I did. I’m guessing it’s a child of the big three thing.” Thalia said.

“Probably. Lucky us.” Percy sighed.

**Luke Castellan—signing off for now.**

“Done.” Piper said. “That took forever.”

“Definitely the longest chapter we’ve read so far.” Thalia agreed.

“Let’s take a five minute break and then resume reading.” Chiron said. Everyone took the chance to stretch their legs. Some of the demigods grabbed food. Percy took the chance to grab Annabeth,

“Are you ok?” He asked.

“I don’t know.” She admitted. “That was…”

“Yeah. For what it’s worth. I see why you defended him so hard now. He was a pretty decent guy back then. I still don’t agree completely though. He’s changed from the guy he was then, but I do understand.”

“Thanks Percy. I guess, I just didn’t want to admit how much he had changed. But reading that...hearing how he was then...I hate it.” She looked like she was about to start crying again. Percy pulled her into a hug.

“Luke’s still in there somewhere. Maybe we can find a way to reach him.” He said, though he didn’t think it was possible.

“I hope so.” She said, voice cracking just a little.

“We should get back.” He said after a few minutes of standing in an embrace. She nodded.

“Thank you.” She said, wiping her eyes.

“Anytime. What are friends for?” He flashed her a crooked grin. They made their way back to the throne room.

“Percy.” Apollo called. Percy ignored him. He wasn’t ready to talk about that yet. He still didn’t know how he felt. Well, he was definitely angry...and horrified but he still cared about Apollo and it was messing up his head. He knew they needed to talk about it but it could wait until after the reading. 

The god sighed. It wasn’t exactly unexpected but it still hurt. He took his seat. Michael and Will weren’t sitting with him either, anymore. Will was with Nico and Michael was over with Frank. 

“It’s my turn to read.” Annabeth announced.

“Are you sure?” Thalia asked, looking worried. Annabeth nodded. She picked up the book and turned to the correct page. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to clear up any questions the 'book' they got is a combo of both demigod diaries and demigod files, its not a specific book. I will not be doing Staff of Hermes as this takes place after the Last Olympian though I may do once they have finished that book.


	24. Percy Jackson and the Stolen Chariot

“There’s no title. Not even a chapter title or anything. Just a blank page between sections.” Annabeth frowned.

“That’s weird.” Piper said. “Everything’s had a chapter title before.” Annabeth shrugged and began reading.

**I was in fifth-period science class when I heard...was getting attacked by possessed poultry,**

“Is this still Luke’s point of view?” Connor asked, looking confused.

“No. Luke didn’t go to fifth grade.” Thalia pointed out.

“I think we’re back to mine.” Percy said glumly. Well, it had been a nice reprieve but sadly it seemed it had been brief.

“Possessed poultry?” Leo was more interested in that than whose point of view it was.

“That’s what it sounded like.” Percy shrugged. He locked eyes with Clarisse as he guessed what this was going to be about. He hadn’t exactly had many science lessons interrupted in the last year and this was quite memorable anyway. She glared at him furiously as if this was his fault and then sunk back so she was leaning against Chris’ chest. This was  _ not _ an event she wished to recall, let alone have everyone else hear about. Apparently Percy’s sucky luck was catching.

**and, believe me, that’s a situation I’ve been in before.**

“You’ve been attacked by possessed poultry?” Reyna raised an eyebrow.

“Those birds that attacked Camp when Tantalus was there.” Percy reminded her.

“They weren’t possessed.” Annabeth pointed out. Percy shrugged. 

**Nobody else seemed to notice the commotion...stringy brown hair and jeans, combat boots and a denim jacket.**

Now everyone turned to look at Clarisse.

“Yeah. It’s me. So what?” He glared around the room.

**She was hacking at a flock of black birds the size...like an arrow, and it lodged in her shoulder.**

“Were you alright?” Chris asked worriedly.

“Of course I was.” She replied easily. He raised an eyebrow, seeing right through her bravado and she sighed. “I was fine. I just don’t want to read about this.” He nodded.

**She cursed and sliced at the bird, but it flew away...She wouldn’t last much longer.**

“I would have been fine, punk.” She glared at him.

“Sliced up and dead but other than that completely fine.” He rolled his eyes.

“I can deal with a bunch of birds.” Clarisse snapped, resisting the urge to snap his scrawny neck. Percy’s eyes flicked over to her father before back to Clarisse who’s scowl had deepened even further.

“Of course. My mistake.” He said, keeping the sarcasm to a minimum.

**I did the only the thing I could...get you out of class faster than anything else.**

“I hope you didn’t do that too often?” Poseidon looked at him sternly but there was a twinkle in his eye that told Percy his dad wasn’t serious.

“On the odd occasion.” He grinned. “And this time was for a good reason.”

“Good to know, Percy.” Connor grinned.

  
“Do not think I shall fall for such things.” Chiron looked at the Stolls in amusement.

“Of course not.” Travis cut in quickly. “We wouldn’t dream of it.” Nobody seemed convinced of this.

**‘Go!’ Mrs White said...slamming against the brick wall and sliding into a trashcan.**

“Nice.” Jason laughed.

“Good shot.” Chris told her, looking amused.

“It probably works better if you slice them.” Will told her jokingly.

  
“But that way is funnier.” Leo said, before Clarisse could explode at the son of Apollo.

**That still left a dozen more swarming around her...zipped over her head and impaled themselves in the wall.**

“Don’t distract her in the middle of a fight.” Ares growled. “I thought you learnt that lesson with the bulls.”

“I was helping.” Percy shrugged.

“By getting her killed?” The god of war snarled. Percy didn’t bother replying. Clarisse obviously hadn’t died and he wasn’t going to win that argument.

**‘This is my school,’ I told her...As long as it wasn’t tipped with poison, I’d be okay.**

“That would be your luck.” Poseidon grumbled.

“It wasn’t poisoned.” Percy assured him.

“Good.” Chris said because if Percy had been poisoned so had Clarisse.

**I took a bag of ambrosia out of my jacket...but she took the ambrosia.**

“Maybe you didn’t  _ need _ it but it couldn’t hurt either.” Reyna pointed out gently. Clarisse grunted but didn’t say anything.

**We swallowed a few bites – not too much...I guess that’s why you don’t see many fat gods.**

Everybody chuckled.

“It doesn’t burn gods to ashes.” Hermes pointed out in amusement.

“Plus gods can look any way they want to.” Dionysus reminded him. Percy fought back the urge to ask why he would want to look like he did.

**Anyway, in a few seconds our cuts and bruises had disappeared...Why were those birds after you?’**

“It wasn’t any of your business.” Clarisse glared.

“You got yourself attacked right outside my school. It became my business.” He grinned annoyingly at her.

**Clarisse pushed me, or tried to. I was too accustomed to her tricks. I just sidestepped and let her stumble past me.**

“You are kind of predictable.” Beckendorf told her.

**‘Come on,’ I said. ‘You just about got killed at my school...like she was in serious trouble.**

Ares looked at his daughter in concern. 

**‘It’s my brothers,’ she said. ‘They’re playing a prank on me.’**

“They wouldn’t play a prank on your outside of Camp. They know that’s dangerous.” Beckendorf frowned. Even the Ares cabin had limits.

“Not my demigods siblings.” Clarisse scowled.

  
“Why would immortals want to prank you?” Connor asked.

“You’re about to find out.” She growled.

**‘Oh,’ I said, not really surprised...‘My immortal brothers. Phobos and Deimos.’**

Ares raised an eyebrow. His two boys were troublemakers but they didn’t usually pick on his other children.

“What are they up to this time?” Aphrodite sighed. 

**We sat on a bench at the park while Clarisse...dad’s car for a joyride and now it’s missing.’**

“You did what?” Ares asked in astonishment.

“It wasn’t a joyride.” Clarisse glared at Percy. “I was taking the ritual and those two tried to make me fail.”

“Of course they did. I need some words with those two.” The war god sighed. Phobos and Demios were very territorial. They never did like it when his kids got to test the chariot but that didn’t give them the right to interfere. They knew he would take badly to that so they must really hate Clarisse getting a shot. Then he frowned. If Clarisse was taking this ritual then that would make her the first of his female children to do so in a  _ very _ long time. He must have high hopes for her.

**‘It’s not a car,’ Clarisse growled...chased me off with those stupid arrow-throwing birds.’**

“So they are jealous?” Silena asked, realising these guys were also her half brothers. “And they want to make you fail which will get you into trouble with your dad?”

“Yeah.” Clarisse sighed.

“Jerks.” Chris muttered.

**‘Your dad’s pets?’**

**She nodded miserably. ‘They guard his temple...he would come down hard on her. Real hard.**

Ares frowned, feeling uneasy. He could easily recall the last time Percy had seen him talking to Clarisse. He definitely did not want a repeat of that.

**‘I’ll help you,’ I said.**

“Err, maybe that’s not such a good idea.” Annabeth said. “If this is a test, Ares definitely won’t take too kindly to you, of all people, helping Clarisse with it.”

“I couldn’t just let her try to take on two minor gods by herself.” Percy pointed out.

**She scowled. ‘Why would you?...her or anybody else getting beaten up by Ares.**

“I wouldn’t…” Ares protested. Then he trailed off. Based on the last encounter, maybe he would.

“I should hope not.” Aphrodite told him firmly.

“He might if he knew Percy was involved.” Apollo spoke up quietly. Ares considered that. The Jackson boy did seem to be a trigger for him, although he had to admit he didn’t mind the brat quite so much after reading so much about him. He would never  _ like _ Percy Jackson but he didn’t hate him either. In these books though, the idea of Jackson helping his daughter with her ritual would most likely set him off. Especially if she still failed the ritual.

**I was trying to figure out how to explain...‘You lost it,’ he teased. ‘Don’t ask me.’**

“He does realise that the chariot being stolen is not the same as losing it? Or is he just stupid.” Chris muttered angrily. Ares glared at him. They might be in the wrong but they were still his kids too. And nobody got to call them stupid.

**‘You little –’...I stuck Riptide’s point against his throat.**

A few people smirked.

**‘You’d better return that chariot,’ I told him...You’re hanging out with a sworn enemy?’**

“Not on purpose.” Nico pointed out. “He won’t go away.”

“He’s good at that.” Grover laughed.

**‘I’m not hanging out with him!’**

“Let’s hope they don’t go back and tell Ares that.” Travis said.

“They wouldn’t. Or they would have to admit that they know that because they stole the chariot.” Aphrodite told him. “And he would be rather upset that they interfered with the ritual.”

**Phobos’s eyes glowed bright red...she were being attacked by invisible bugs. ‘Please, no!’**

Clarisse went red and scowled at the floor.

“What’s going on?” Piper asked.

“He’s making her see her worst fear.” Silena told her quietly, feeling horrible for her friend. She knew Clarisse would absolutely hate having this read out to all these people. It was too much like showing weakness.

**‘What are you doing to her?’ I demanded...I dug my sword a little deeper against his throat,**

Ares was torn. On one hand he didn’t want Clarisse being tormented by his sons and was grateful for someone helping her but on the other his natural reaction to Jackson threatening any of his children would be to rip his head off.

**but he simply vanished, reappearing back at the...I’ll find out, you know. I always do.’**

Everyone threw what they thought were subtle looks at Percy, wondering what his biggest fears were. He had plenty of things to be scared of but they wondered which one he was most afraid of.

**‘Give the chariot back.’ I tried to keep my voice even. ‘I took on your dad once. You don’t scare me.’**

“You got lucky, punk.” Ares said through gritted teeth. 

“I do that a lot.” Percy shrugged.

**Phobos laughed. ‘Nothing to fear but fear itself...just the sort of place you belong.’**

“Across the water with animals?” Thalia frowned.

“Staten island.” Annabeth said immediately. “There is a zoo over there. And it would be difficult to get to except Percy is there.”

“How lucky.” Chris said dryly.

**He snapped his fingers and disappeared...Phobos took the prize.**

“You haven’t met his brother yet.” Triton warned.

“Yeah. He was a jerk too.” Percy nodded.

**I don’t like bullies. I’d never been in the ‘A’ crowd at school...I wanted to teach this guy a lesson.**

“They’re in trouble.” Rachel said in a sing-song voice.

“Yep.” Grover grinned. “Percy’s mad and feeling protective.”

“I was not feeling protective of  _ Clarisse _ .” Percy scoffed incredulously.

“You kind of were.” Thalia smirked at him.

“I was not!”

“Were too.”

“Shut up both of you.” Clarisse growled. 

**I helped Clarisse up. Her face was still beaded with sweat...‘That’s where they get the word phobia?’**

“Yes.” Aphrodite nodded.

**‘Yeah,’ she grumbled. ‘He’s so proud of that...I’m the first daughter to get a shot in a long time.’**

“You deserve it.” Chris told her with a proud smile.

“Indeed she does.” Chiron agreed. Clarisse blushed a little and squeezed Chris’ hand gratefully.

**‘Good for you.’...Just the kind of place a war god would want to hang out.**

Ares grinned happily.

**‘We’ve got maybe four hours before sunset,’...‘Staten Island,’ I said. ‘They’ve got a small zoo.’**

“Nice deduction.” Annabeth smiled.

“I know New York and immediate areas.” Percy grinned.

**‘Maybe,’ Clarisse said. ‘That sounds like the kind...‘We don’t have time to be wrong.’**

“There aren’t any other places it could be.” Annabeth said with certainty.

“Unless Phobos was lying.” Piper pointed out.

“Not his style.” Aphrodite said. “He would want her to get close so he could keep tormenting her.”

“He could just torment her even if she’s looking in the wrong place.” Jason pointed out.

“Yeah but that’s not as fun. It’s a game to them.” Clarisse scowled.

**We hopped off the train at Times Square...‘He modelled that on his mom,’ I said, looking up at the statue.**

“You remembered.” Annabeth said, looking proud and pleased.

“Yeah.” Percy grimaced. “No idea why.”

**Clarisse frowned at me. ‘Who?’...I guess her egghead facts rubbed off on me sometimes.**

“Apparently quite a lot.” Thalia said.

**‘Useless,’ Clarisse said. ‘If it doesn’t help you fight, it’s useless information.’**

“That’s not true.” Will said. 

“Healing helps you fight.” Clarisse rolled her eyes.

“True but that’s not what I was referring to. There is plenty of knowledge that doesn’t help you fight that is still useful. Building is one of them. Knowing how to build shelter is useful.” He pointed out. Clarisse rolled her eyes once more but didn’t respond.

**I could’ve argued with her, but just then the ferry...head of a sea serpent erupted from the bay.**

“Oh wonderful.” Jason groaned.

“Percy can deal with the sea serpent.” Poseidon said confidently.

**The monster was at least as big as the boat...covered with ugly scars, and he held a javelin in his hand.**

“I’m guessing that would be Deimos then.” Dakota said.

“Yeah.” Silena nodded.

**‘Deimos!’ Clarisse yelled...‘My brother tells me you’re a wimp!**

“Really?” Triton scoffed. “Oh well, if he wants to get overconfident that’s his problem.” Ares grimaced as he thought something similar.

**Besides, I love terror. I live on terror!’...‘Grab onto my neck. We’re going for a ride.’**

“This was awful.” Clarisse complained. Percy just smirked.

**She didn’t protest. She grabbed onto me...and both of them toppled into the sea.**

“Nice but he can teleport out of the sea. You can’t.” Chris pointed out.

“I was fine.” She assured him.

**The sea serpent came after me...and the serpent sank beneath the waves.**

“Nice job.” Triton nodded. “Those things are big babies.”

“So are you.” Amphitrite told her son in amusement.

“I am not.”

“I’m afraid your mother’s right.” Poseidon smirked at his son. “You can be a very large baby when you get injured.” Triton pouted at both his parents.

**I dived underwater and watched as it retreated...But I’m sure we’ll see him again. Phobos, too.’**

“Oh definitely.” Will nodded.

**Tourists were still running around the ferry...and the bus driver wouldn’t let us on the bus.**

“We’ll work on that.” Poseidon promised.

“That would be very useful.” Percy said.

**‘We’ll never make it in time,’ she sighed...What do you fear? I’ll find out, you know.**

“You’ll beat them.” Thalia said confidently.

**After dragging ourselves halfway down the island...I had enough cash to get us inside.**

“That’s handy.” Grover said. “Breaking in would just make it more difficult.”

“Because Percy’s luck would totally get them caught in five seconds flat.” Annabeth laughed.

**We walked around the reptile house...pictures hadn’t shown people dying painful deaths.**

“Lovely.” Rachel muttered sarcastically.

**The horses were breathing fire out of their nostrils...chests that said OFFICIAL ZOO VEHICLE.**

Everybody snickered at that.

**‘Where are Phobos and Deimos?’...but this had to be a trap.**

“Of course.” Ares nodded. 

**I concentrated on the horses...He called me some names I can’t repeat.**

More snickering.

**‘I’ll try to get the reins,’ Clarisse said...Phobos and Deimos appeared in the chariot,**

“Oh great. Now it’s both of them together.” Leo sighed.

“Yeah. That was pretty likely once they reached the chariot. They don’t want Clarisse getting it back in time.” Jason said.

**both of them now dressed in pitch-black...raging team of fire-breathing horses with only my sword.**

“That would be suicidal and stupid, not heroic.” Triton told him firmly.

“Although running isn’t the best idea either. He can’t outrun a chariot.” Connor pointed out.

“Ture but getting run over isn’t the answer either.” Nico said. “Running gives him time to think of one of his ridiculous plans.”

**The truth is, I ran. I jumped over a trashcan...like I needed somebody to tell me that.**

“Just trying to help.” She smirked.

**I jumped and landed on a rock island...before I had crazed sea mammals after me too.**

“Wouldn’t be the first time.” Percy grimaced.

“What did you do?” Poseidon asked in amusement,

“Long story.” He shuddered. “I’ll tell you another time.”

**I ran as Phobos cursed and tried to get his horses...Both of them went tumbling out of the chariot as it lurched forward.**

“Nice.” Thalia said.

**I could hear Deimos and Clarisse starting to fight...caterpillar tracks, a turret and a long gun barrel.**

“He gets a tank?” Beckendorf complained. 

“Keep running.” Apollo said urgently.

“Yeah. I got that.” Percy said, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

**A tank. I recognized it from this research...plastic cups and disposable cameras in every direction.**

“He’s going to hurt the mortals if he keeps that up.” Piper said.

“Phobos knows better than that.” Aphrodite assured her.

“Are we sure about that?” Silena muttered under her breath so her mother wouldn’t hear.

**As Phobos re-aimed his gun...Phobos couldn’t fit the chariot through the doorway.**

“I don’t think that will be an issue if there isn’t a doorway left.” Beckendorf pointed out.

“Yeah.” Percy agreed. “I could still hope.”

**Of course, if he blasted through it...It’s great when you’re a celebrity to squids.**

Everybody laughed.

“It’s not just squid. You’re a celebrity to most underwater creatures.” Triton told him with a smirk.

**I stopped at the back of the aquarium...its leather seat that looked like human skin.**

“Eww.” Gwen said in disgust.

“That’s horrible.” Dakota agreed.

“Is it human skin?” Clarisse asked.

“No.” Ares said.

“Good to know.” His daughter replied. That would be a bit much even for her.

**This was the same motorcycle Ares had ridden...my favourite place in the world, and it was in flames.**

All of the Greek demigods winced at hearing that. With the war with Kronos it was a very real possibility.

**The woods were on fire. The cabins were smoking...I would make a choice that would save or destroy Mount Olympus.**

Poseidon pulled his son into a hug. He could feel that Percy was shaking ever so slightly and he cursed the Fates for ever putting this on his son. While he had complete faith Percy would make the right decision he should not have to. 

**Now the moment was here, and I had no idea...What if I did the wrong thing?**

“You won’t.” Apollo said without an ounce of doubt. “How could you not?”

“Easily.” Percy shot back scathingly.

“No. Given everything we’ve read about you, I know for a fact that you will make the right choice.” Apollo told him earnestly. “You’re so  _ good _ . Unlike us.” He gestured to himself and the rest of the gods. “You know right from wrong and you’re selfless enough to make the right choice no matter the cost.” 

“Apollo is correct.” Poseidon agreed. Percy felt warmth filling him at the unwavering confidence from his father and his still just about boyfriend. Looking around he saw all of the Greek demigods were also nodding their agreement. He was humbled by their faith in him but it also increased his fear. What if he did let them down?

**Then I heard the voices of the aquarium fish...I raised Riptide and blocked the blow just before it cut me in two.**

“Good timing.” Leo whistled as both Poseidon and Apollo growled.

“You don’t think those two are working for Kronos do you?” Will asked suddenly. “Trying to get Clarisse in trouble with her dad and attempting to kill Percy? That’s two of our best fighters.”

“No. They wouldn’t do that.” Ares growled furiously. “This is just them being jealous and petty.”

**I counterattacked and stabbed Phobos in the arm. Golden ichor, the blood of the gods, soaked through his shirt.**

“Nice hit.” Nico grinned.

**Phobos growled and slashed at me. I parried easily...He wasn’t even a decent fighter.**

Ares swore under his breath. Apparently not quietly enough as Aphrodite was glaring at him reprovingly. It seemed his sons needed some more lessons. 

“I bet the same is true for many immortals. They rely on their powers so much that if you take them away, I expect they would be poor physical fighters.” Annabeth stated. All of the gods looked affronted by this. Of course they would not be helpless without their powers.

“Yeah. We actually train all the time.” Percy pointed out. “I doubt Phobos actually practises sword fighting much.” That was going to change if Ares had anything to say about the matter. He would not have people saying  _ any _ of his children were poor fighters.

**I pressed him back, swiped at his face...The fear god looked afraid.**

Clarisse smirked in satisfaction while all of the other demigods watched Percy with no small amount of awe. Regardless of whether he had his powers or not, Phobos was still a god, and a son of the war god, and Percy made beating him sound easy.

“That’s...wow. That’s pretty impressive.” Will whistled.

**Finally I kicked him backwards against the water fountain. His sword skittered into the ladies room.**

Ares put his face in his hands. Not only had his son lost, the fight had barely lasted a minute by the sounds of it.

A few people sniggered at where his sword ended up.

**I grabbed the straps of his armour...bigger scar in a much more painful place!’**

“You tell him.” Will grinned. 

**He gulped. ‘There will be a next time, Jackson!’**

“Oh I’m sure he’s just shaking in his shoes.” Thalia scoffed.

“Phobos is the one who should be worried about meeting Percy again.” Rachel agreed with a grin.

**And he dissolved into yellow vapour.**

**I turned towards the fish exhibits. ‘Thanks, guys.’**

Triton, Poseidon and Amphitrite all smiled at his manners. Many of the sea god’s demigod children did not bother.

**Then I looked at Ares’s motorcycle...started the ignition, and rode out of the aquarium to help Clarisse.**

Ares growled. Helping his daughter against his other children was bad enough but he understood the need, riding his war chariot was quite another. “Jackson.” He spat angrily.

“Sorry.” Percy shrugged. “I wasn’t going to push it and I didn’t want to leave it while I went to help Clarisse. Phobos might have come back to move it somewhere else.” Ares gritted his teeth as the explanation actually made sense. “It won’t happen again.”

“See that it doesn’t.” He said crisply.

“I can’t believe Percy rode the war chariot.” Travis muttered quietly.

  
“Percy gets to do all the coolest stuff.” Connor nodded.

**I had no trouble finding her...lounging on a park bench with a bunch of pigeon feathers around him.**

People laughed again.

**I parked the motorcycle next to the petting zoo...the war god bellowed. ‘I told you what would happen!’**

Ares gaped furiously. How dare his son use  _ his _ form to terrorise his daughter! He and Demios would be having some very stern words about this.

**He tried to strike her, but Clarisse scrambled away...‘Clarisse!’ I yelled. ‘It’s an illusion. Stand up to him!’**

“Thank the gods for Percy.” Chris muttered.

“Yeah.” Clarisse agreed very quietly.

**Deimos’s form flickered. ‘I am Ares!’ he insisted...This was her worst fear.**

Ares felt like he’d been punched in the gut. Being a strict father was one thing, being his own daughter’s worst fear was quite another.

“Clarisse…” He began, unable to find the words he needed for this.

“That’s not the case anymore.” Clarisse told him shortly. And it was true. After being here and spending some time with her father, especially the moments like the night before, she wasn’t afraid of him like she had been. She still didn’t want to disappoint him but that was just because she wanted to make her dad proud, not out of fear. 

Ares swallowed hard and nodded. “I guess this reading is changing more than just some rules.” She added, giving her dad a small smile. Apparently Ares owed the Fates a favour after this. He’d never been so grateful for the reading, not that it was hard, he’d never been particularly grateful in the first place.

**She had to overcome it for herself.**

Ares, and a few of the other gods, nodding approvingly at Percy’s realisation.

**‘Clarisse!’ I said. She glanced over, and I tried to hold her eyes. ‘Stand up to him!’ I said. ‘He’s all talk. Get up!’**

“Percy’s right. Once you get past their power, they are kind of pathetic.” Thalia said. Ares glared.

**‘I… I can’t.’**

**‘Yes, you can. You’re a warrior. Get up!’**

“Thanks, Percy.” Clarisse said quietly.

“Don’t mention it.” He smiled slightly. She nodded gratefully. Percy was a good guy. Most of the other demigods at Camp would have held this over her head for ages. She’d never have heard the end of it. Percy just helped and then let it go. Maybe they could manage to be friends. Sort of.

**She hesitated. Then she began to stand...Very quietly, she said, ‘No.’**

“That’s my girl.” Ares said quietly but proudly. Clarisse smiled happily.

**‘WHAT?’...‘You’re not even a good fighter.’**

Ares heaved a sigh. Both of his sons were training every single day for the next century.

**Deimos growled in frustration...not deep, but enough to hurt even a godling.**

“Good shot.” Chris grinned.

“Go Clarisse.” Beckendorf cheered, looking highly amused.

“Good for you.” Katie said with a smile. Clarisse looked around at all of her fellow campers in surprise.

**He yowled in pain and began to glow...‘You didn’t see that. You didn’t see any of that.’**

“Not a thing.” Percy said.

“Not much point in that now.” Clarisse scowled.

“You did great.” Connor said. She raised an eyebrow at him. “Deimos deserved it.” He shrugged.

**I grinned. ‘You were great.’...The ferry didn’t take cars. Or chariots. Or motorcycles.**

“How did they get it across in the first place?” Piper frowned.

“Teleporting it.” Reyna guessed.

**‘Great,’ Clarisse mumbled. ‘What do we do now?...Then I got an idea. ‘We’ll take the direct route.’**

“You mean drive it across the water?” Annabeth frowned. Percy nodded.

“Now that’s impressive.” Nico said.

**Clarisse frowned. ‘What do you mean?’...we rode the tops of the waves straight across New York Harbor.**

“Going that far is going to take a lot of power.” Triton said.

  
“He erupted a volcano. I think he can manage.” Leo pointed out.

“Yeah, and doing that almost killed him. He took days to recover.” Jason reminded him.

“Oh yeah.” Leo frowned.

**We arrived at Pier 86 just as the sunset...hardest things I’d ever done. I was exhausted.**

“Good job.” Poseidon told his son with a proud smile.

**‘I’d better get out of here before Ares arrives,’ I said.**

**Clarisse nodded. ‘He’d probably kill you on sight.’**

“Probably.” Aphrodite nodded with a grimace.

**‘Congratulations,’ I said. ‘I guess you passed your driving test.’**

Clarisse smiled.

“And more.” Chris grinned.

**She wrapped the reins around her hand...‘I won’t tell anybody.’**

“Of course he wouldn’t.” Thalia looked affronted at the very idea.

“That wasn’t what I wanted to say.” Clarisse said, looking uncomfortable.

**She looked at me uncomfortably...Clarisse had ever said thank you in her life.**

“Well, she has now.” Percy grinned.

“Don’t get used to it, Prissy.” 

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

**‘Don’t mention it,’ I told her...Or I’d have to kill you.’**

Everybody laughed a little.

“Well that explains why you guys were so friendly the next time you met.” Annabeth laughed.

  
“We were not  _ friendly _ .” Percy said, pretending to look horrified.

“You weren’t trying to kill each other. For you two that’s friendly.” Beckendorf pointed out.

“Fair enough.” Clarisse laughed.

**A faint smile flickered across her face...It had been a long day, and I was ready to go home.**

“Done.” Annabeth said. “Thank the gods that was shorter than the last one.”

“Let’s stop for lunch.” Chiron said. Everybody was happy with that idea. They all made their way to the dining hall. 

On the way Apollo tried to stop Percy once more, now they would have the time to talk.

“Look, we’ll talk this evening.” Percy told him. “This is going to be a long conversation and I don’t want to be interrupted by the reading.”

“Ok.” Apollo nodded, not looking happy with the idea but respecting Percy’s decision. “But I have to know. Do you hate me now?”

“No.” Percy said, giving him a small smile. “I’m angry but I don’t hate you.” Apollo let out a sigh of relief and smiled in return before heading to the dining room.

“You made the right decision.” His dad’s voice made Percy jump. 

  
“Do you think I should forgive him?” Percy asked, wanting his dad’s opinion.

“I don’t think it’s your place to forgive him.” Poseidon said calmly. “What he did might have been wrong but forgiveness should come from the people who were hurt by his curse. What happened, happened before you two were involved, before you were even born. What you need to decide is whether you can accept what he did and move on without holding it against him, and whether he has changed. Hear his side of the story, see if he truly regrets it and then make your decision.” Percy considered this.

“Thanks, dad.” Poseidon smiled.

“Come on. Let us go and eat.” They headed to the dining room. 

Everyone ate a light meal, breakfast hadn’t been that long ago, and they were eager to get back to the new book. It had been pretty interesting so far.

“I’ll read next.” Clarisse offered. Annabeth handed her the book with a smile.


	25. Percy Jackson and the Bronze Dragon

“No title again.” Clarisse stated.

**One dragon can ruin your whole day.**

“Dragon?” Poseidon frowned, worriedly.

“I’ve met quite a few.” Percy replied, trying to think which event this could be about.This didn’t do anything to settle Poseidon’s nerves.

**Trust me, as a demigod I’ve had my share...But that time with the bronze dragon?**

“Bronze dragon?” Leo perked up excitedly. “Do you mean Festus?”

“Who is Festus?” Beckendorf asked, giving him a weird look.

“He’s a bronze dragon I found in the woods at Camp.”

“Then yes, probably. I really hope the camp doesn’t have more than one. However great he is, one is certainly a big enough handful.” Beckendorf nodded. “You named him Festus?”

“You named a dragon Happy in Latin?” Reyna looked amused. 

“That’s what Jason said.” Leo grinned. “And yes, apparently I did.”

“Also, why did you have to find him, he should be in a safe spot? What happened?” Beckendorf frowned, having only just picked up on the rest of what Leo had said. Leo glanced at Jason and Piper for help. They both just shrugged.

“Er, he went a bit haywire.” Leo said. “But I fixed him up. The rest is a bit of a long story and might come up in some of the reading.” Beckendorf nodded but he still worried, both about the dragon going haywire and the fact that Leo had been the one to find it and fix it. His half brother must have been pretty new to camp at the time and the dragon was pretty dangerous.

**I thought for sure my friends and I...Dionysus, was turning anyone who misbehaved into a shrub.**

“Really Dionysus?” Poseidon gave the wine god a long suffering look.

“It might do them good.” DIonysus shrugged.

**Typical summer-camp stuff….with my help, thank you very much –**

Beckendorf and Leo cheered while Clarisse grumbled under her breath. Hephaestus smirked happily.

**which meant that the Ares cabin would be...both war god cabins – were against us on the red team,**

“Oh, that’s not a good combination for you.” Thalia winced. Athena smirked slightly. 

“No. Not really.” Percy grimaced.

**along with Aphrodite, Dionysus and Demeter...Annabeth is not somebody you want as an enemy.**

Annabeth and Athena were now both smirking. All the Greek campers were nodding in agreement.

**Right before the game, she strolled up to me...She knows I hate that name,**

“I didn’t know you actually hated it then.” Annabeth told him.

“I know.” Percy replied, giving her a smile.

**mostly because I never have a good comeback.**

Annabeth laughed, although now she knew from their previous talk that wasn’t actually quite true.

**She’s the daughter of Athena, which doesn’t give...cute in combat armour, but Annabeth pulled it off.**

“Cute?” Annabeth scoffed while Apollo scowled and muttered under his breath.

“Yep.” Percy nodded, grinning at her.

**‘Tell you what.’ She lowered her voice...I’ll make sure you don’t get pulverized too much.’**

“Ah, now the question is, is it a trap?” Katie asked.

“Of course it’s a trap.” Connor said. “Annabeth doesn’t give advice to the enemy.”

**‘Gee, thanks,’ I said, ‘but I’m playing to win.’...A girl starts trying to kill you, you know she’s into you.’**

“Oh, is that what I should have been doing?” Silena looked at him in amusement. Beckendorf looked at her a little nervously.

“Na, your way was awesome too.” He said. She smirked at him.

“I’m not sure that’s true.” Connor said, glancing at Annabeth. She’d tried to kill him several times for certain pranks and he doubted she was into him.

“It definitely is.” Travis told him, glancing at Katie. “She tries to kill me on a regular basis.”

“You two and your pranks make everyone want to kill you. That doesn’t mean they are into you.” Katie rolled her eyes.

“But you are into me.” Travis smirked. She punched him on the arm. “See what I mean?” She rolled her eyes once more.

**‘Makes a lot of sense.’...turned eighteen and was on his way to NYU in the autumn.**

Leo had to fight not to wince at that. He hoped very much that they could change stuff so Beckendorf _could_ do that. His half brother was a pretty cool guy.

**Since he was older, I usually listened to him...made my stomach do somersaults.**

Apollo quietly wondered if Percy would want him to attend a Camp firework event, providing they managed to work out the current mess he had inadvertently made. Or any other mortal event that was considered a ‘dating event’. He never usually bothered with such things but then his relationships with mortals had always been short term. He wanted whatever this was with Percy to definitely be long term and that might mean posing as a mortal more often than he was accustomed to.

**Then Silena Beauregard, the head counsellor...Beckendorf swallowed like he’d forgotten how to breathe.**

Beckendorf blushed while Silena laughed quietly.

**I patted him on the shoulder...‘which means she doesn’t want us to go left.’**

“Or she knows exactly how you think and she wants you to go left.” Thalia pointed out.

**Beckendorf nodded. ‘Let’s suit up.’...but we’d have pretty good cover, at least from a distance.**

“That’s so awesome.” Leo said. “Can you teach me to make that?”

“I can try.” Beckendorf smiled. “It takes a long time though.”

“That’s ok. We seem to be stuck here for a while yet.”

“Then sure. We can have a go.”

“Wicked.” Leo grinned happily.

**‘This stuff took forever to forge,’...I could tell he liked being called Captain.**

“We’ll have to remember that.” Chris smirked.

“Whatever you’re thinking, don’t you dare.” Beckendorf glared at him.

“Yes, Captain.” Chris grinned. Beckendorf rolled his eyes.

**The rest of the Hephaestus campers wished...even if her team did outnumber us.**

“She totally wants you to go left.” Reyna nodded. 

“Yeah, Annabeth wouldn’t make a mistake like that.” Thalia agreed.

**We moved into enemy territory. I knew we had to hurry...I knew we were in trouble when I saw the mountain of dirt.**

Percy, Beckendorf, Silena and Annabeth all grimaced. This had been a great find but still a horrible adventure.

**‘Holy Hephaestus,’ Beckendorf whispered. ‘The Ant Hill.’**

“An ant hill?” Octavian looked supremely unimpressed.

“Yep. Obviously not just a regular ant hill you idiot. It was full of Myrmekes.” Percy told the annoying Roman. All of the gods frowned.

“You should get away from there.” Poseidon said.

“And quickly.” Apollo agreed.

**I wanted to back up and run. I’d never seen the Ant Hill before...‘Myrmekes,’ I muttered.**

“Wow, you actually remembered what they are.” Annabeth sounded surprised. “Usually you wait until after you’ve been attacked to work that out.

“Hard to forget about those things.” Percy muttered.

**That’s Ancient Greek for ‘ants’, but these...The Myrmekes were the size of German shepherds.**

“Ok, those are some pretty big ants.” Dakota said, going a little wide eyed.

**Their armoured shells glistened blood-red...One ant was dragging the glossy black hood of a sports car.**

“Where did that come from?” Pollux wanted to know.

“Haven’t the faintest idea.” Percy shrugged.

**‘They love shiny metal,’ Beckendorf whispered. ‘Especially gold. I’ve heard they have more gold in their nest than Fort Knox.’ He sounded envious.**

“They have what now?” All of the Hermes kids perked up dramatically at this pronouncement.

“Don’t even think about it.” Chiron told them. 

“Why not?” Connor asked. “They might have other useful stuff too.”

“Yeah, maybe they’ve collected magic weapons and armour.” Travis nodded eagerly. Chiron just gave them a stern look and they all pouted.

**‘Don’t even think about it,’ I said...Then the ants rolled the thing over, and I saw a face.**

“Poor Festus.” Leo moaned. His poor dragon was having his head dragged around by giant ants.

**I just about jumped out of my skin. ‘That’s a –’...The wires were frayed and tangled.**

“That explains a lot.” Leo said to himself. While he had been told that Beckendorf had repaired Festus, obviously there had been some damage done by the ants that he had missed. Or not had time to fix.

“What does?” Beckendorf frowned.

“You’ll find out.” Leo told him, giving his best innocent grin which his half brother clearly did not buy. Thankfully, though, he let the matter drop anyway.

**The head must’ve been heavy, too...Yankees cap on because she was totally invisible.**

“Nice job, Annie but actually not the time.” Thalia smiled at her friend.

“Don’t call me Annie.” Annabeth glared at her.

**I tried to move, but she dug her knife under my chin...An invisible hand confiscated my sword.**

“Oh that’s not good.” Grover groaned.

“Somebody needs to go and help my son.” Hephaestus grunted anxiously. 

“Yeah, considering you had been listening, you should have heard the part about there being a bronze dragon head.” Jason pointed out. Annabeth and Silena both shrugged.

**Annabeth took off her cap and appeared...He hadn’t noticed the girls, or the fact that I wasn’t behind him.**

“Hurry up you people.” Leo muttered. 

**‘Come on!’ I told Annabeth...ant bit Beckendorf’s leg, and he crumpled to the ground.**

Hephaestus gripped his throne tightly.

“But those things are poisonous aren’t they?” Clarisse muttered, trying to think.

“They paralyse you.” Percy said grimly.

“How did you not hear them talking about the giant ants?” Katie frowned at Annabeth and Silena.

“We were too far behind to hear them.” Silena said unhappily. If they had just looked a few seconds sooner they might have been able to help Charlie.

“So you thought they were hiding behind a bush for no reason?” Frank wondered.

“We thought they had spotted some guards.” Annabeth shrugged. She felt guilty for not noticing the ants in time. She was usually far more observant of her surroundings but she had gotten distracted by capturing Percy.

**The second ant sprayed goo in his face, and Beckendorf screamed. He dropped his sword and slapped wildly at his eyes.**

“Son.” Hephaestus grunted, voice tight with worry.

“I was alright. Eventually. Made a full recovery but it hurt a lot at the time.” Beckendorf admitted.

**I surged forward, but Annabeth pulled me back. ‘No.’...‘Don’t!’ Annabeth hissed. ‘It’s already too late!’**

“You can’t just leave him.” Clarisse frowned.

“I didn’t plan on leaving him. But there were too many and it wouldn’t help if the rest of us got caught too.” Annabeth pointed out.

**‘What are you talking about?’ I demanded...She grabbed it by the wires and started dragging it towards the woods.**

“Thanks.” Beckendorf said. Annabeth nodded.

**‘What are you doing?’ I demanded. ‘Beckendorf –’...Their bite is poison. They spray acid.**

Everybody winced as they thought about Beckendorf being hit in the face. He had been pretty lucky to make a full recovery from that. Especially as he hadn’t been rescued right away.

**They communicate with all the other ants...We’ve got about half an hour.’**

“Half an hour from when they grabbed him or half an hour from right then? Because I imagine it took a fair bit of time to drag the dragon head that far.” Rachel pointed out.

“Half an hour from when I said it.” Annabeth said.

**‘How do you know that?’ I asked...I said, ‘or Chiron. Chiron will know what to do.’**

“No. Everyone is scattered for the game. It’ll take far longer than half an hour to gather everyone.” Clarisse pointed out.

“They can’t storm the place alone.” Hazel frowned.

**Annabeth shook her head...‘It’s an automaton,’ she said.**

Nico shuddered.

**That didn’t make me feel any better...and those were the nice ones.**

“They aren’t all bad.” Beckendorf said.

“Yeah. Festus is awesome.” Leo put in eagerly.

“You said yourself he went haywire before you fixed him.” Nico pointed out grimly. 

“It was totally minor.” Leo said, though he was biting his lip nervously. Nico gave him a disbelieving look.

**‘So what?’ I said. ‘It’s just a head. It’s broken.’...‘You mean the old guardian? But that’s just a legend!’**

“Apparently not.” Connor said.

“I don’t think we can consider any tales as old legends anymore.” Chris stated. “Maybe they only appear as a sign from the gods. I mean, they find the dragon right as we need it.”

“Chris has a point.” Annabeth said. “How many other stories are actually real?” She wondered.

“Maybe we’ll find out.” Rachel pointed at the book.

**‘Whoa,’ I said. ‘What old guardian?’...They couldn’t move the whole thing, so they chewed off the head.**

“I hate those things.” Leo grumbled.

**The body can’t be far away.’...‘We could reassemble it. If we could activate it –’**

“In half an hour?” Frank said sceptically. “I know you’re super smart but that’s gotta be stretching it even for you.”

“It wasn’t the easiest thing we’ve ever done.” Annabeth admitted. “But we managed.”

**‘It could help us rescue Charlie!’ Silena said...Or its programming went haywire. No one knows.’**

“So you want to reassemble it when it could be haywire and that was before it got chewed up by the ants?” Hazel asked nervously.

“It was our only chance to save Beckendorf.” Percy pointed out.

**‘You want to reassemble a haywire metal dragon?’**

“Even you thought it was a crazy idea.” Frank pointed out.

“Yeah but now I’ve lived through it and know we all survived.” Percy grinned. “So I can say it was a good idea.”

**‘We have to try!’ Annabeth said...Beckendorf would want us to try.’**

“Yeah. I would.” Beckendorf nodded.

“That’s because you’re crazy.” Silena told him.

“Hey, I went to get the dragon. I wanted him to be fixed. Regardless of whether he ended up helping to save me.”

“Definitely crazy.” Nico muttered.

**I didn’t like the idea. On the other hand... scuttled around him, waiting for him to be tenderized.**

Everyone grimaced at that image.

**It wasn’t hard to follow the ants’ trail...‘The dragon’s neck,’ I said. ‘You think the ants made this crater?’**

“Ants wouldn’t make a crater like that.” Beckendorf said.

“Not many things would.” Thalia frowned.

**Annabeth shook her head. ‘Looks more like a meteor blast…’...He wanted Charlie to…’ She choked up.**

“Thanks dad.” Beckendorf grinned.

“You’re welcome.” Hephaestus grunted, still feeling a little concerned even though he knew Beckendorf got out of this mess just fine in the end.

**‘Come on,’ I said. ‘Let’s reconnect this bad boy.’...We had no tools and no experience.**

“The no tools part is going to be the bigger problem.” Leo said. He knew first hand how fiddly it was working with Festus.

**Annabeth fiddled with the wires and cursed...I said, ‘I’d pick you.’**

Everybody burst out laughing.

“Only you, Percy.” Grover chuckled.

“I just meant…” Percy groaned and covered his face.

“Oh, we know what you meant but that’s hilarious.” Triton told him through his own laughter.

**I just blurted it out – to give her confidence, I guess – but immediately I realized it sounded pretty stupid.**

“It helped.” Annabeth told him.

**‘Awww…’ Silena sniffled and wiped her eyes...I was afraid Annabeth was going to stab me with it.**

“Why would I do that?” Annabeth frowned in confusion.

“I don’t know.” Percy shrugged. “But you’d spent most of the past year taking pretty much anything I said or did kinda badly.” She grimaced.

“Sorry.” She said. He just shrugged.

**Instead she used it as a screwdriver to open...Beckendorf probably had five or ten minutes left before the ants got him.**

“That’s not bad going to be fair.” Jason said. “It took you twenty minutes to find the body and reattach the head even when you had no idea what you were doing.”

“You did a good job.” Beckendorf told Annabeth.

**Finally Annabeth stood up and exhaled...‘If somebody twisted my eyeballs, I’d wake up,’ I agreed.**

Everybody laughed again.

**‘What if it goes crazy on us?’...but the dragon’s body was amazing – like a high-tech tank with legs.**

“Festus is incredible.” Leo nodded proudly. “He can do so many cool things and I’ve only just scratched the surface.”

**Its sides were plated with bronze and gold scales...It had no wings – most Greek dragons don’t –**

Leo just smirked at this but said nothing. He wanted that to be a surprise for later. If they read about it. If not, he would let Beckendorf know at least, maybe they could find the wings in time for their fight against Kronos.

**but its tail was at least as long as its main body...‘We’ve woken you to defend the camp. You remember? That is your job!’**

“That’s pretty brave of you.” Reyna said.

“We didn’t have many other options.” Silena shrugged. “We needed to save Charlie.”

**The dragon tilted its head as if it were thinking...At the word Hephaestus the dragon’s neck straightened.**

Hephaestus and his kids all grinned.

**A shiver rippled through its metal body...joints creaking, feet pounding craters into the ground.**

Beckendorf smiled.

**It charged straight for the Ant Hill...The dragon blew fire and sent a whole column of them into a panicked retreat.**

“Well it’s definitely handy to have on your side.” Reyna muttered.

“Yeah. Dragons do tend to tip the scales in your favour.” Dakota agreed.

**Who knew ants were flammable?...I’d ever followed a child of Aphrodite into battle.**

Piper grinned. It was nice to know that at least one of her siblings wasn’t a complete airhead. Of course, after spending this much time with Silena, she knew she wasn’t like the rest of the Aphrodite kids. In fact, she was kind of in between Piper and the others. Silena was still quite prone to squealing at a ridiculously high pitch and cared far more than Piper did for her appearance but at least she was willing to fight. She was willing to do the dirty work when it came down to it.

**We ran past the ants, but they ignored us...I could tell they let their food rot before eating it.**

“Gross.” Will wrinkled his nose.

“Gross doesn’t even come close to how disgusting that was.” Silena told him with a grimace.

**Somebody seriously needed to teach...helmets, swords, musical instruments, jewellery. They glowed the way magic items do.**

All of the Greek campers looked excited.

”There must be so many magic items in there.” Katie said.

“Maybe some of them could help us against Kronos.” Clarisse agreed, looking thoughtfully.

“You heard Annabeth, even the whole camp can’t take on that nest.” Chris pointed out.

“No but with the dragon we could.” Connor shrugged.

“Why didn’t you tell the rest of us about this?” Travis wondered.

“Because you seem to forget that I'm the only one the dragon listens to and that's tenuous at best.” Beckendorf reminded them. “And without it, we don’t have a chance.”

“Well yeah but if we’d got the whole Hephaestus cabin working on it, I’m sure you guys could fix it properly.” Thalia said.

“I think we were going to but we got distracted by all the missions defeating Kronos’ minions. We didn’t have the people to spare to work on the dragon. You guys know how manic it’s been.” Beckendorf sighed. All the Greek campers nodded. 

"But it works, right?" Leo asked, just to make sure.

"Mostly. But it won't answer to anyone but me." Beckendorf told him. "If anyone else tries it tries to fry them."

**‘That’s just one room,’ Annabeth said...Another first: a child of Aphrodite uninterested in jewellery.**

“We’re not all that vain and shallow.” Silena glared at Percy. He raised an eyebrow.

“You’re not.” He said. Then he glanced at Drew who was filing her nails and paying no attention to the story whatsoever. She had barely spoken since her arrival and most people wondered why she was even there. Silena sighed. Percy did have a point there.

**We forged on. After six more metres...partly because his camouflage armour was now the colour of garbage.**

Beckendorf chuckled a little. “At least my nose sort of got used to the smell. Although I’m not sure my sense of smell has been right ever since.”

“I’m not surprised. I think my nose would have stopped working altogether.” Percy grimaced.

**‘Charlie!’ Silena ran to him and tried to help him up...‘The dragon! You didn’t – reactivate it?’**

“You’re welcome.” Annabeth told him.

“Because it worked out so well.” Beckendorf shot back.

“You’re alive.” Percy pointed out. “I’d consider that a win.”

**‘Afraid so,’ I said. ‘Seemed like the only way.’...We’ve got to get out there!’**

“That was the plan.” Silena reminded him.

**As it turned out, we didn’t need to go anywhere...Ant Hill to bits as it tried to shake off the Myrmekes crawling all over its body.**

“Well, hopefully that’ll make a scavenging run easier.” Connor said hopefully.

“Or they will have dragged all their treasure off somewhere else to make a new nest.” Clarisse said.

“Let’s think positive.” Katie told her.

**‘Come on!’ I yelled. We dug ourselves out of...biting at the joints of its armour, spitting acid all over it.**

Leo grimaced. Considering all it had been through, Festus had done pretty well to work for as long as he had. He wished his dad had been able to fix him but at least he could continue to take part in their quest in some form.

**The dragon stomped and snapped and...immediately fell on his face when we let go of him.**

Despite the situation most of the campers laughed at that. Beckendorf glared at the lot of them but it just made them laugh harder.

**‘Charlie!’ Silena helped him up and pulled him...Silena pleaded, ‘it saved your life! Please, for me.’**

Silena and Beckendorf smiled at each other.

“It sounds like he’s going to turn out pretty useful.” Beckendorf said, gesturing at Leo. “So it’s a good job you got me to save him.”

“Well it was the least we could do. He did save your life.” She grinned.

**Beckendorf hesitated. His face was still bright red...rippling up and down its body and connecting with the ants.**

“Oh that’s cool.” Leo said. “Wish I knew about that one. How did you know to do that?”

“It might only have been a legend but I studied up on it as much as possible. Most of the Hephaestus cabin did.” Beckendorf grinned. “Or at least the older campers did. Those who joined since the war started obviously didn’t have time for that kind of thing.” He added sadly.

**Some of the ants exploded...This time we did not yell, ‘For Hephaestus!’ We yelled, ‘Heeeeelp!’**

“How is Beckendorf going to run? He could barely walk a second ago.” Reyna pointed out.

“You’d be amazed what you can do when a haywire bronze dragon is heading towards you.” Percy told her. She nodded.

**The dragon pounded after us, spewing fire and zapping lightning bolts over our heads like it was having a great time.**

Leo couldn’t help but smile. It sounded like Festus was having the time of his life. Obviously he wouldn’t have been so happy if he hadn’t known that everyone made it out alive.

**‘How do you stop it?’ Annabeth yelled...chased by a huge monster to get your body back in order)**

“Exactly.” Percy grinned.

**shook his head and gasped for breath. ‘You shouldn’t have turned it on! It’s unstable! After a few years, automatons go wild!’**

“Only after a few years?” Nico muttered quietly.

“Well, maybe once this is over you can do a proper diagnostic on it.” Clarisse said. “Fix it up properly.”

“I’ll definitely have a look.” Beckendorf. “I’ve been meaning to sort out the dragon for ages.”

**‘Good to know,’ I yelled. ‘But how do you turn it off?’...‘Hey, lizard-lips! Your breath smells like gasoline!’**

“I’m not sure it would care.” Travis pointed out.

“I just wanted it’s attention. I’m not sure it mattered what I yelled, as long as I made noise.” Percy shrugged.

“Hey, Festus is sensitive.” Leo told him. Percy raised an eyebrow.

“The giant bronze dragon is sensitive?”

“Yes.” Leo nodded. Most of the Greek campers looked quite bemused.

**The dragon spewed black smoke out of its nostrils...like it couldn’t believe we’d be so foolish as to fight.**

“It has a point.” Chris muttered.

**Now it had caught us, there were so many...down on the dragon’s foot and sliced off a talon.**

“That was unnecessary.” Leo complained. “You didn’t need to hurt him.”

“He was trying to kill us!” Annabeth pointed out.

**Its head creaked as it looked down at me. It seemed more confused than angry, like, Why did you cut off my toe?**

A few people snickered.

**Then it opened its mouth...only the statue of a dragon, baring its teeth at the sky.**

“That’s pretty impressive.” Frank said. He couldn’t believe Beckendorf had willingly thrown himself on the back of a giant, crazed dragon.

“Good job.” Hephaestus told his son. 

**Beckendorf slid down the dragon’s neck...was a lot nicer than that stupid dragon’s.**

“Gee, thanks.” Annabeth said, rolling her eyes.

“It’s true.” Percy pointed out.

“I should hope so.” She said.

**‘You, too,’ I said shakily...Beckendorf looked pretty distracted by the attention.**

Beckendorf went a little red again while Silena smiled.

**‘We – uh – I don’t know,’ he said...attack the campers – that would pretty much stink.**

“Yeah.” All the Greek campers nodded in agreement. The last thing they needed was that going haywire again.

“Maybe wait until the war is over.” Katie stated.

“I was planning to.” Beckendorf nodded. “Although I have been working on fixing some of the parts in any spare time. It’s not ready yet but I might take it for another test run once we get back.”

“Just make sure you do it in the woods. Far away from Camp.” Pollux said grimly. Beckendorf nodded.

**‘Did you see all the treasure in the Ant Hill?’...army of demigods even to get close to that treasure.’**

“Yeah but it would be worth it.” Connor stated.

“Maybe we should make that a priority when we get home.” Travis agreed.

“Hopefully most of the ants will still be fried.” Clarisse added. “Seems worth it to me.”

**‘Maybe,’ Beckendorf said. ‘But what a treasure…’...you big dummy! I thought you’d never ask!’**

Aphrodite squealed with delight. 

“Mom.” Silena looked slightly embarrassed.

“What? It’s so sweet.” Aphrodite gushed. “You saved his life.”

**Beckendorf suddenly looked a whole lot better...got the courage to ask Silena Beauregard out. It wasn’t fair.**

“Almost dying will do that.” Beckendorf shrugged.

“I do that on a regular basis.” Percy pointed out. “It never gave me the courage before.” Apollo frowned. Did he wish he had asked Annabeth out? Did he still have feelings for her?

“I still hate how you can say that so casually.” Poseidon complained. His son should not be _that_ used to almost dying at the age of fifteen. Even as a demigod.

**‘You know,’ Annabeth said as we struggled along...would have his chance to jump – now that was brave.’**

“Both of them were very brave.” Thalia stated. “And for once the crazy idea wasn’t Percy’s.”

“Can’t let him have all the fun.” Beckendorf laughed.

**‘Or pretty stupid.’...‘Just take the compliment. I swear, is it so hard?’**

Percy grimaced. He just didn’t like taking compliments when he didn’t feel he deserved them. 

**We locked eyes. Our faces were, like, centimetres apart. My chest felt a little funny, like my heart was trying to do jumping jacks.**

Apollo scowled and clenched his jaw in an effort not to say anything. He _really_ wished Percy wasn’t currently mad at him. Even being able to hold his hand would make all of this much more bearable.

**‘So…’ I said. ‘I guess Silena and Charlie...‘Good job! Let’s get these two to jail.’**

“The game still wasn’t over?” Reyna asked, looking impressed.

“We were only gone just over half an hour.” Silena shrugged. “It was a long game but not the longest we’ve ever had.”

“Plus the team captains had both gone missing.” Clarisse rolled her eyes.

**I stared at him. ‘The game’s not over?’...There was a dragon, and the whole Ant Hill was attacking us.’**

“Those guys need to get to the infirmary.” Will stated. “Both of them got hit by the acid, plus Beckendorf was also poisoned.”

**‘Uh-huh,’ said another Athena guy...she was going to give us a free walk back to the border,**

“Nope.” Thalia said. “She would never.”

“We were injured!” Percy protested.

“Yes. Percy and Beckendorf should have gone to the infirmary.” Apollo said through gritted teeth. The acid had eaten completely through Percy’s shoe and got to his foot. It needed to be checked out. Who cared about some stupid game.

“Neither of their injuries were that bad.” Annabeth shrugged. He resisted the urge to strangle her. Most of his annoyance wasn’t her fault.

“Beckendorf got hit directly in the face with acid! He was incredibly lucky there was no serious damage.” Will frowned at her. “He definitely should have been checked out sooner. He could have lost his eyesight or something.”

**but she drew her dagger and pointed it...I could’ve figured all that out ahead of time?’**

“Not even Annabeth is that good. Besides, the dragon was a sign from Hephaestus.” Grover pointed out.

“I wouldn’t have put it past her.” Percy muttered.

“If I’d known about the ants I would have stopped Beckendorf sooner.” Annabeth pointed out.

“Hey you sent me to get the snot beaten out of me by the Ares cabin when I had no training at all. I wouldn’t put it past you.” Percy shrugged.

“I wouldn’t risk anyone’s life for a _game_.” She looked hurt by the accusation.

“I know that.” Percy assured her quickly. Not even Clarisse would do something like that. “I meant it wouldn’t be the first time you used someone as bait and it went wrong.” She looked slightly mollified but still unhappy.

**It didn’t seem likely, but this was Annabeth...It was totally unfair to be treated like prisoners after all we’d been through.**

Poseidon, Hephaestus and Apollo all looked distinctly unhappy about this.

**But Annabeth just smiled and put us in jail...‘Did she just… ask me out?’**

Apollo folded his arms so nobody would notice his clenched fists. He really needed to either hug Percy or punch something. Neither option was currently available to him and it was grating on his nerves.

Percy watched the sun god and saw his tight jaw and narrowed eyes. Apollo was jealous. He got it. He wouldn’t enjoy reading about other people asking Apollo out either, or hearing about all his past lovers. Still, he wasn’t sure how he felt about the god right now. Logically, he had known Apollo had done many, _many_ horrible things in the olden days. All the gods had, even his dad. That was just a fact of life. It didn’t stop him loving his dad and it hadn’t stopped him agreeing to date Apollo. But this had been so much more recent. Hal might have been old but it had been recent enough for Thalia and Luke to have met him. And that was what he was struggling with. It was clear evidence that the gods really hadn’t changed that much. Yeah, Apollo had seemed pretty regretful in the end but in the beginning? He had been trying to defend what he did. His dad was right, he needed Apollo’s side of the story but could the gods really change? It seemed like he hadn’t changed in the past few millenia why would he now? Why was Percy enough to make Apollo want to change such long standing behaviour?

At the same time, the gods had been changing here. They were interacting with their kids and actually being worried for them. They weren’t treating them like simple tools. But how long would it last? Percy didn’t have the answers but it was something he needed to know. The other thing to consider was if Apollo was regretful and promised to change could he trust him? Percy couldn’t cope spending his entire relationship doubting his partner. They desperately needed to talk. As soon as they were done reading this book, he was dragging Apollo somewhere quiet for a long chat.

**He shrugged, completely disgusted. ‘Who knows with girls? Give me a haywire dragon any day.’**

“You sure about that?” Silena asked with a sly smile.

“Yes.” He stated, still pretending to sulk. Silena laughed and rolled her eyes.

**So we sat together and waited while the girls won the game.**

“Done.” Clarisse said. She glanced quickly through the rest of the book. “I think there is only one more but it looks quite long.”

“Well let’s read it now. Then we can have the rest of the day off. We shall start on the future books tomorrow.” Chirons stated.

“I’ll read.” Chris said. He took the book from his girlfriend and started reading.


	26. Percy Jackson and the Sword of Hades

**Christmas in the Underworld was NOT my idea.**

“Oh. It’s this.” Percy grimaced. He glanced over at his dad and Zeus who were  _ not _ going to be happy about this.

“You went to the Underworld again?” Poseidon groaned.

“I was invited this time. Sort of. More like summoned.” Percy shrugged. Hades looked confused.

“Why would I summon you?” He wondered.

“You’ll see.” Nico told his father.

“You were there too?” 

“Yep.”

**If I’d known what was coming, I would’ve called in sick.**

“We couldn’t have done it without you.” Nico pointed out.

“Yeah.” Percy sighed. “Still...there are so many other ways I would have rather spent Christmas.”

**I could’ve avoided an army of demons, a fight with a Titan and a trick that almost got my friends and me cast into eternal darkness.**

“WHAT?” Poseidon, Apollo and Hades all yelled out in horror.

“You fought a Titan?” Frank asked.

“Yeah.” Percy nodded. He wondered what had happened to the Titan now known as Bob. He wasn’t sure he trusted Hades to keep his end of the deal but Percy had simply had no time to go and check on him. Plus he didn’t want to accidentally trigger the Titan’s memories or something. If it was at all possible, he would probably manage to do it by some freak accident. Still, once the war was over, maybe he should go and say hello.

**But no. I had to take my stupid English exam...I’m-pretending-like-I-did essay on A Tale of Two Cities,**

“Really, Percy?” Annabeth sighed in exasperation.

“I hate reading.” He shrugged. “I didn’t have the patience to sit and struggle through the book.” 

**when Mrs O’Leary burst onto the stage...Santa’s elves and the rest of the Winter Wonderland set.**

Everybody sniggered at this.

**Everyone looked up. I was sure the other kids...adjusted his glasses and frowned.**

“You actually had a teacher called Boring?” Leo asked through his laughter.

“Yep.” Percy nodded.

“That’s an unfortunate name.” Thalia snickered.

**‘All right,’ he said. ‘Whose poodle?’**

“They thought Mrs O’Leary was a poodle.?” Beckendorf chuckled. “They couldn’t see a more inappropriate kind of dog.”

“She could have been a chihuahua.” Rachel pointed out. 

“Or a pug.” Piper suggested. Percy shuddered.

“I hate those things.”

“They are so cute.” Piper told him.

“No they aren’t. They look like they ran in to a brick wall too many times.” Percy pulled a disgusted face.

**I sighed in relief. Thank gods for the Mist... ‘Mary had a Little Lamb.’ More kids cracked up.**

Most of the room did the same.

**‘Enough!’ Dr Boring snapped. ‘Percy Jackson, this is a final exam. I cannot have poodles –’**

“I guess you’re going to pretend you’re already finished and not actually complete the exam?” Annabeth sighed.

“Her, if Mrs O’Leary came to my school to find me I figured it was important.” Percy shrugged.

**‘WOOF!’ Mrs O’Leary’s bark shook the auditorium...‘I’ll get her out of here, Dr Boring,’ I promised.**

“Still the best name for a teacher.” Connor sniggered.

**‘I’m finished anyway.’...probably wasn’t the weirdest thing they’d ever seen.**

“Not even close.” Rachel nodded.

“Yeah. They probably see weirder things than that on a daily basis.” Travis agreed.

**Mrs O’Leary kept well ahead of me...I was already freezing,**

“And you’re going to the Underworld. Please tell me you at least have Riptide?” Poseidon frowned.

“Yeah. Don’t go anywhere without it.” Percy nodded.

“Except gym class.” Rachel pointed out.

“True. I don’t go anywhere without it unless the stupid school make me wear gym clothes with no pockets.” Percy amended.

**but I climbed the fence and plunged into the frozen shrubbery...the steel-coloured East River flowed sluggishly.**

Poseidon grimaced. He really should take care of those rivers.

**White plumes billowed from the rooftops...It was probably the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.**

“That’s my deer.” Artemis frowned.

“Why would you summon Percy to the Underworld?” Apollo glanced curiously at his twin.

“I wouldn’t.” She replied. “And even if I did, I would have simply sent the hellhound, not my deer.”

“No. The deer was for me.” Thalia spoke up.

“So somebody summoned all of the children of the big three to the Underworld?” Demeter asked, looking a little anxious. 

“There can’t be many good reasons someone would need all three of them.” Hermes frowned.

**Mrs O’Leary licked her lips like she was thinking...‘It’s the sacred animal of Artemis. I figured it was some sort of sign.**

Artemis scowled. Someone had used  _ her _ sacred animal to lure her Lieutenant somewhere. She did not like that one bit.

**And, um…’ She nodded nervously at Mrs O’Leary...strange game of keep-away around the clearing.**

Artemis raised an eyebrow in surprise.

“I forgot you’d never met Mrs O’Leary until then.” Percy said thoughtfully.

**‘Percy…’ Thalia frowned. ‘This can’t be a coincidence...‘Some god is messing with us,’ I guessed.**

“Aren’t they always.” Nico sighed, resisting the urge to glare at Persephone. This version of her hadn’t done it yet.

**‘Probably.’...I’ll buy you a cheeseburger. How’s Annabeth?’**

“And yet you made  _ me _ pay in the end.” Percy complained. Thalia smirked.

“You fell for the whole ‘I forgot my wallet’ act. That’s your fault.”

“Of course I didn’t fall for it. I know you have it in your pack which you can summon whenever you want.” Percy rolled his eyes. 

“So why pay then?”

“Because getting into an argument in the middle of McHale’s would probably not have ended well.” Percy pointed out. “Especially after what happened.” Thalia nodded, admitting he had a point. This adventure had been pretty stressful and a friendly argument would have very easily descended into decidedly not friendly.

“Well, I did intend to pay, I was just having a joke. The next one is on me.” She promised.

“I’ll hold you to that.” He grinned.

**Before I could answer, a cloud passed...Thalia’s eyes widened. ‘Bianca’s little brother?’**

Thalia winced at her own words. “Sorry Nico.”

  
“It’s ok.” He said quietly. He couldn’t expect that nobody would ever mention her name again.

**Nico scowled. I doubt he liked being announced...What in Hades’s name am I doing in New York?’**

“Why were you in a New Orleans graveyard?” Hades eyed his son sternly.

“I was looking for something. Don’t worry, I wasn’t summoning anyone or anything like that.” Nico promised.

**‘We didn’t bring you here,’ I promised...‘The prophecy. You don’t think Kronos…’**

“No. I mean, Thalia can’t even turn sixteen anymore.” Hazel pointed out. 

“True. There’s enough power having the big three kids together that it might have nothing to do with the prophecy.” Jason agreed.

**She didn’t finish the thought...Thalia, Nico and me, and we fell into darkness.**

“Really?” Poseidon groused at his brother. “You just opened the floor up? You couldn’t have sent them to a door or something?” 

“If I brought them all there, I wouldn’t be trying to kill them. That was simply the quickest way.” Hades shrugged, wondering what the heck he needed these three demigods for. As a rule he hated using demigods, especially the children of his brothers. Although, he supposed Percy had done him a favour before now by returning his helm.

“Why  _ are _ you bringing them altogether?” Zeus asked, casting worried looks at his brother.

“How should I know? I haven’t done it yet.” Hades pointed out.

**I expected to keep falling forever...but not like a New York winter. More like a cave.**

“My dear?” Hades looked at his wife in surprise. Why was she summoning demigods?

“I’m not sure.” She replied, looking equally surprised.

**‘I’ve been here before,’ I said...‘My stepmother Persephone’s garden.’**

“That is not a proper garden.” Demeter snapped. “Gems are not flowers. They are not supposed to grow in a garden.”

“Mother.” Persephone let out a frustrated sigh.

**He made a sour face and dropped the fruit...aiming her bow at a tall woman in a white dress.**

“Excuse me?” Persephone looked quite put out at having a bow aimed at her.

“We’d just been dropped in the Underworld without any warning.” Thalia shrugged, looking unapologetic. “It could have been anyone who summoned us.”

**At first I thought the woman was a ghost...like the Underworld had sapped her life force.**

“Exactly.” Demeter said. “Even the boy can see it. You shouldn’t be trapped down there like that dear.”

“We’ve discussed this, mother. I am happy with my life.”

“The Underworld is no place for someone like you. You heard him, it is draining you. You are too beautiful to look like a ghost, my dear Kore.” Persephone rolled her eyes.

“So I was having an off day. It happens when I’m stressed and if something has happened worth me bringing in these demigods, then I probably have a right to be stressed. I love my husband and I enjoy my life. Quit nagging.” She told her mother. Demeter sat back in a huff.

**I had a feeling that in the world above...god can get you blasted into dust bunnies. ‘Um, Nico –’**

“And yet you do it all the time.” Nico reminded him. Percy shrugged.

“I’m not the best example to copy.” He pointed out.

“No. Don’t you start acting like your cousin.” Hades stated firmly. He might find his nephew quite amusing but he certainly did not want his son to have the same attitude. Poseidon smirked at his brother, guessing what he was thinking.

**‘It’s all right,’ Persephone said coldly...Nico cried. ‘You turned me into a dandelion!’**

“Why would you do such a thing?” Hades asked his wife with a long suffering sigh.

“I don’t know. But given his current attitude I would say he probably deserved it.” Persephone shrugged. Nico glowered.

“She did it because I was asking questions about my mother.” Nico told his father. “And didn’t want to discuss it.” Hades groaned and his wife scowled. He knew Persephone never liked his mortal dalliances, he couldn’t really blame her, but she had always hated Maria di Angelo more than most because Hades had actually loved her. 

**Persephone ignored her stepson...Thalia lowered her bow. ‘You sent the golden deer?’**

“I will thank you not to use my sacred animal to lure my Hunters on quests.” Artemis snapped at Persephone angrily.

**‘And the shadow that collected Nico,’...you know what’s good for you, you will help him.’**

“Is that so?” Zeus looked over at his brother and daughter angrily. Both of them shrugged.

**We sat on a dark veranda overlooking the garden...I guess she still resented living with Hades half the year.**

Hades looked at her with a frown while Demeter looked triumphant. Persephone sighed and cursed the demigod for being so perceptive.

“I do not resent my husband, nor do I resent living in the Underworld.” She stated calmly. “What I do not like is not having the choice of when I come and go. When it is time to stay in the Underworld, I cannot leave. When I must go to the world above, I do not see my husband for six months.” Persephone explained.

“Oh, my love.” Hades looked slightly guilty. 

“It is no matter.” She waved his sorrow and guilt away. “It is as it is.”

**She looked so bleached and out-of-place...reading my thoughts. ‘Hades is my husband and master, young one.**

“I am not your master.” Hades frowned once more.

“You are in some ways.” Persephone reminded him gently. “While I may be queen of the Underworld, your word is law.”

**I would do anything for him. But in this case I need your help, and quickly. It concerns Lord Hades’s sword.’**

“Hades doesn’t have a sword.” Poseidon pointed out, glancing at his brother warily. Zeus looked concerned and angry while Hades was frowning in confusion.

“Then it seems he will be making one in the future.” Zeus growled. “You know the laws on ancient weapons and symbols of power, brother.” He spat the last word as if it were an insult.

“Of course I do.” Hades replied neutrally. “But currently I have no idea what my future self is thinking.” And he honestly had no idea. He knew making a new symbol of power, especially a weapon, would send Zeus’ paranoia into overdrive. What would make him risk that now?

**Nico frowned. ‘My father doesn’t have a sword...new symbol of power? Without Zeus’s permission?’**

“He had better not be.” Zeus growled, anger growing by the second.

**The goddess of springtime pointed...‘My lord Hades must be ready.’**

“You have your helm. You do not need a new symbol of power.” Poseidon stated, still eyeing Hades warily. Hades cursed. He had finally been making progress with his brother. They had been getting along and his future self was going to ruin it. At least Poseidon simply looked wary, not furious the way Zeus was looking.

**‘But Zeus and Poseidon would never allow Hades to forge a new weapon!’ Thalia protested...‘You mean it would make Hades their equal?**

“It would not make us equal.” Zeus scowled. “It would give you two symbols of power when we have one each.”

“Except you two both have weapons. I don’t.” Hades pointed out. “My helm is useful and can aid in battle but it is no weapon like the two of you have.”

“You were given your choice.” Poseidon reminded him. “You could have chosen a weapon.”

“Well I didn’t know we would be going to fight father again, did I?” Hades stated.

**Believe me, daughter of Zeus, the Lord of the Dead has no designs against his brothers.**

“Oh and we are supposed to believe that?” Zeus scoffed.

“Yes. You are.” Hades shot back. 

“You waited until war was almost upon us and now you are forging a new blade. You plan to attack and take over while we are distracted.” Zeus stood up and pointed an accusing finger at his brother. Hades rolled his eyes.

“I don’t want father back any more than you do. It will take all of us to defeat Typhon once more. If I attacked you then I may as well hand victory to our father.” Hades pointed out.

“Well then maybe you plan to strike right after our victory. When we are all weary from battle.” Zeus stated.

“Or maybe he really doesn’t have any plans to attack us.” Poseidon stepped in. Hades sent him a grateful look. “I do not agree with you forging a new weapon.” He continued, looking briefly at Hades. “But I do not believe he had plans to overthrow Olympus either.” Zeus looked between them furiously.

“Enough.” Hestia now spoke up. “Let us keep reading.” She motioned for Chris to resume.

**He knew they would never understand...Nico made a gagging sound. ‘The keys of Hades?’**

Hades and Persephone both went pale.

**‘Wait,’ Thalia said. ‘What are the keys of Hades?’...Persephone said. ‘Or to release it.’**

“Useful keys but why would you need one in a sword?” Katie asked warily.

“Whoever wields the sword would be able to raise the dead.” Nico told her. “Or, send a soul to the Underworld with one touch.”

“That is far too powerful to be allowed.” Zeus glared at Hades.

“I am in agreement with Zeus for this.” Poseidon said. “A new symbol of power is one thing which is bad enough by itself but a sword of that magnitude? I’m afraid that cannot be allowed brother. If that fell into the wrong hands…”

“I’m guessing it has.” Reyna said. Everyone turned to look at her. “Why else would Persephone summon those three? She would hardly admit to having the sword made for no reason. Thalia and Percy might well go back and tell their parents about it. I’m guessing the sword has gone missing and she needs them to get it back.”

“You’ve only just had it forged and you’ve lost it already?” Poseidon rolled his eyes at his brother. “But this is only strengthening the argument that this is a terrible idea. If father gets his hands on that blade…”

Hades shuddered.

“But why would she want the kids of Zeus and Poseidon?” Jason wondered. “They might go back and tell their parents anyway. They surely have no reason to help get this sword back to Hades.”

“They had better tell us.” Zeus looked at his daughter with a stern glare. She shrugged.

“If the sword is as powerful as Nico says then they will help get it back if only to prevent Kronos getting it.” Connor said.

**Nico swallowed. ‘If one of those keys has been...Persephone said, ‘why you must help get it back.’**

“Reyna was right.” Dakota smiled.

“That’s not a good thing.” Gwen pointed out. “It means Kronos has got someone to steal the sword for him.”

“Well, given that those three are here and don’t look too stressed out, I’m going to assume they find the sword.” Frank stated. All of the gods relaxed marginally at this.

**I stared at her. ‘Did you say get it back?’...How stupid was that? Kronos probably has it by now!’**

“Exactly.” Zeus nodded.

**Thalia’s arrows sprouted into long-stemmed roses...with disrespect in my own palace.’**

“Well maybe you should have been more careful.” Percy pointed out. “Plus, you needed our help not the other way around.” Persephone glared at him.

**Thalia ground her teeth. ‘Give… me… back… my… bow.’...Nico guessed. ‘And join the Titans.’**

Hades sighed. This was not good. There was also something wrong with that explanation. His servants would not abandon him so lightly. Would they?

**Persephone didn’t answer, but if a goddess...it is given to him by their own children. It will show that you trust Hades.’**

“And why would my son give Hades such a weapon?” Poseidon asked, eyes flashing. He would not stand for his son being used in such a fashion. “Not to mention, if Percy told me he gave Hades the sword under threat, and not because he trusts Hades, then I would be all the more angry.” His tone was light but there was anger underneath. Persephone swallowed. 

“My daughter would know better than to give Hades such a weapon.” Zeus stated.

**‘But I don’t trust him,’ Thalia said...much less give him a super-weapon? Right, Nico?’**

Zeus and Poseidon nodded approvingly.

**Nico stared at the table. His fingers tapped...‘I have to do this, Percy. He’s my father.’**

Hades shot Nico a small smile.

“And there is no way Percy is going to let Nico do it alone.” Hazel realised.

**‘Oh, no way,’ Thalia protested...He had a point there.**

“Yeah. You can’t really let the thief give that thing to Kronos.” Travis grimaced.

“How did Kronos even know? This was supposed to be top secret right? There must be spies in the Underworld. Pretty close to Hades as I figure he wouldn’t let anyone but his important advisors know.” Will pointed out. Hades let out a groan of annoyance.

**‘Time is wasting,’ Persephone said...This means the thief has reached an exit and you have failed.’**

“Well that’s just great.” Clarisse muttered.

**I glanced at Thalia. She didn’t seem too enthusiastic...make your dad proud, even if your dad was hard to love.**

Nico sighed. He was glad Percy understood because there was no way he would have made it through that adventure alive without Thalia and Percy. 

**In this case, really hard to love.**

Hades glared and grumbled under his breath.

**Nico was going to do this, with or without us. And I couldn’t let him go alone.**

“Thanks, Percy.” Nico said quietly.

“Of course. We’re family.” Percy grinned at him.

“You’re going to give the sword back to Hades?” Poseidon looked at his son unhappily.

“I did have a condition.” Percy told him.

**‘One condition,’ I told Persephone. ‘Hades will have to swear on the River Styx that he will never use this sword against the gods.’**

“Oaths have loopholes, as we gods know only too well, but I’m glad you did put some thought into this before agreeing.” Poseidon nodded.

“My daughter...you cannot.” Zeus looked at Thalia in frustration.

“I couldn’t just leave Nico and Percy. Besides, I would rather have the sword in Lord Hades’ hand than in Kronos’.” She pointed out.

**The goddess shrugged. ‘I am not Lord Hades...known better than to go on a quest with a couple of boys.**

Artemis smiled slightly. 

“Hey, it’s not our fault Persephone summoned you too.” Percy pointed out. “And you got a cheeseburger out of it.” 

“True.” Thalia nodded.

**‘Did Persephone seem kind of uptight?’ I asked...‘Then why did she include you in the quest?’**

Hades sighed. He wished his wife could get along with Nico. At least she wasn’t as bad as Hera he supposed.

“Probably because she knew Nico was the most likely one to take the quest as he would want to make his dad proud. Then that would make the others take it. If she only brought Thalia and Percy there is probably no way they would do the quest voluntarily.” Annabeth reasoned. Percy and Thalia both nodded at this.

**‘Probably my dad’s idea.’ He sounded like he wanted...Usually Hades liked to threaten demigods in person.**

Hades frowned. That was a good point and one he had been considering. Unless he was too busy searching for the thief or stopping news of the theft from spreading. Something about this entire situation was not quite adding up and it was making him nervous.

**Nico forged ahead. No matter how crowded...take him along next time I go to the shopping mall.’**

Most people snickered.

“However zombie-like they are, they aren’t actually undead.” Annabeth pointed out to her friend with an eye roll.

“Also, good luck getting Nico anywhere near a shopping mall full of people.” Percy laughed as Nico shuddered.

**She gripped her bow tight, like she was afraid...That meant I was older than her. Weird.**

“But I’m so much more mature.” Thalia told him.

“You wish.” He shot back.

“Not this again.” Annabeth groaned. “Stop it you two.”

**‘So,’ I said, ‘how’s immortality treating you?’...‘she’d be in Elysium. She died a hero’s death.’**

Nico smiled softly.

**‘I know that,’ Thalia snapped. Then she caught herself. ‘It’s not that, Percy. I was just… never mind.’**

“Were you looking for me?” Jason asked her quietly. Thalia closed her eyes.

“You and mom, yeah.”

**A cold feeling washed over me. I remembered...Her expression softened. ‘It’s okay. Let’s just get this over with.’**

“Well done, you two managed to actually get along and not fall into an argument.” Katie mock cheered.

**Another petal fell off the carnation as we marched...shut out the screaming and the 1980s music.**

“There is nothing wrong with 80s music.” Apollo protested. “Why would you use that as punishment?” He seemed genuinely confused.

“Some people hate it.” Will told his dad. “Same as all music, some hate it, some love it.” Apollo still looked unhappy.

**The carnation tilted its face towards a hill...‘The number-one expert on cheating death.’**

“Oh not him.” Hermes groaned. “I hate that guy.”

“I think we all do.” Hades scowled.

**Before I could ask what he meant...kicking a boulder that was twice as big as he was.**

The gods all smirked.

**‘I won’t!’ he screamed. ‘No, no, no!’...He staggered back to the boulder and started banging his head against it.**

Now the gods all broke out into amused snickers.

**‘All right!’ he screamed. ‘All right, curse you!’...those disguises! I know you’re the Furies!’**

“He thinks you guys are Furies?” Will frowned.

“Apparently.” Percy shrugged. “As long as I’m not Mrs Dodds I’m ok.”

“Alecto hates that you still call her that.” Nico smirked.

“She hates me anyway.” Percy said.

**‘We’re not the Furies,’ I said...‘Just shut up and talk to my friends.’**

“Bad idea. Bad idea.” Hermes said.

“Do not do this.” Zeus told Thalia, looking concerned.

“What’s the big deal?” She wondered.

“It’s like Atlas’ punishment. If you take it willingly then he goes free.” Hades told her. She gulped, not having known that.

“I guess it’s a good thing we got lucky then.” She said.

**Sisyphus stopped fighting...‘I fooled her once, you know. I fooled them all.’**

Now all of the gods were scowling, Persephone in particular as she was the only one in the room he had fooled directly. 

**I looked at Nico. ‘Translation?’...‘Sisy tricked Persephone into letting him go back to the world to haunt his wife.**

“I love how you asked to call him Sisy and then ignore the fact he said no.” Will sniggered.

**And he didn’t come back.’...‘Rolling a boulder up a hill forever. Was it worth it?’**

“To most people no but part of the curse is that he always thinks the next time will be the one where he succeeds.” Nico informed the room.

**‘A temporary setback!’ Sisyphus cried...‘That’s what the other one asked.’**

“So the thief spoke to him? Why am I not surprised he would help them?” Hades groaned.

**My stomach tightened...wrapped up in black cloth. Skis, maybe? A shovel?**

“Or a sword.” Clarisse stated.

“Sounds about right.” Chris agreed.

**Maybe if you wait here, I could go look for him…’**

“Oh no. Nobody would fall for that.” Apollo scoffed.

**‘What did you tell him?’ I demanded...‘I told him to talk to Melinoe! She always has a way out!’**

“Melinoe? That’s not good.” Persephone bit her lip.

“Who is Melinoe?” Reyna asked.

“My daughter.” Persephone said.

“Goddess of ghosts.” Nico stated grimly.

“She’s supposed to serve me.” Hades said through gritted teeth. 

**Nico lowered his sword...I interrupted. ‘Did he have an eye patch?’**

“Oh, is that the demigod you saved? The one who resurrected Kronos? What was his name? Ethan?” Katie wondered, frowned as she tried to think.

“Yeah. Ethan, son of Nemesis.” Percy nodded.

**‘Oh… maybe,’ Sisyphus said...We fell for it.**

“Seriously guys?” Annabeth groaned. 

“I know. I know.” Percy grimaced. “It was stupid.”

**As soon as we turned, Sisyphus took off...‘I’ll never help you! Go to Hades!’**

“Aren’t they technically already there?” Dakota asked.

“Yep.” Nico nodded.

**‘Already there,’ Nico muttered...I guess he’d had a lot of practice.**

“Thank us.” Zeus muttered.

**‘Take it again!’ he wailed. ‘Please. I can’t hold it.’...we’ve got bigger problems. Come on.’**

“Indeed.” Hades frowned.

**As we walked away, Sisyphus was yelling...I figured I could get it the second time.’**

“But you didn’t. You fought it.” Annabeth reminded her.

“Yeah.” Thalia sighed.

“Besides, you don’t wanna get the rock to the top and free that dude.” Jason pointed out. Thalia nodded.

**She looked back wistfully...I was going to make it back to unwrap my presents.**

“Did you?” Poseidon asked.

“Yeah.” Percy grinned.

**‘So who is this Melinoe?’ I asked...They would’ve looked funny except for the murderous glow in their eyes.**

“Keres.” Persephone stated. “Don’t get bitten.” 

“Yeah. We figured that.” Nico muttered, glancing at Percy.

**‘Keres,’ Nico said...‘Our new master shall give us free rein!’**

“New master?” Hades frowned. “So they have gone over to Kronos then?” He supposed he shouldn’t be too surprised. The Keres were fickle beings and had never liked being in his service. The bigger worry was who else had begun to serve a new master.

**Nico blinked. ‘New master?’...ugly bat face, and the creature disintegrated.**

“Thanks for that.” Nico shot Thalia a grateful look.

“Couldn’t have you getting your face chewed off.” She grinned.

**The rest of them charged...‘Iapetus shall crush you!’ one shouted.**

“Oh. Him?” Hades grimaced.

“That is indeed bad news.” Zeus looked troubled.

“Iapetus?” Connor frowned.

  
“Atlas’ dad.” Chris told him. “His name means the Impaler or the Piercer or something.” 

“It’s the Piercer.” Annabeth stated.

“Great name.” Travis said weakly.

“He is supposed to be in Tartarus.” Zeus frowned. “How many of his other brethren has father freed?”

“We cannot tell.” Poseidon shrugged, though he also looked concerned.

**‘Who?’ I asked. Then I ran her through with my sword. Note to self: if you vapourize monsters, they can’t answer your questions.**

Most people chuckled at this.

“Nice work, Percy.” Grover smirked.

“There were plenty of others who could answer the question instead.” Percy shrugged, though he was grinning sheepishly.

**Nico was also cutting an arc through the Keres...sword in defence, another daemon’s claws raked my shoulder.**

“PERCY!” Apollo and Poseidon cried at the same time. Poseidon clutched his son tightly and Apollo desperately wished he could do the same.

“I’m alright.” Percy assured them.

“You nearly weren’t.” Thalia muttered.

“Keres are spirits of pestilence and disease. Nectar alone isn’t going to take care of that.” Apollo said worriedly. “You need to get to Chiron. And quickly.”

“We had a quest to finish.” Percy pointed out.

“You won’t be much use if it kills you.” The sun god argued.

“I’m here. Obviously I lived.” Percy rolled his eyes.

“Not the point. You didn’t know that at the time.” Apollo glared. “You need to learn to take care of yourself.” Percy softened slightly at the genuine concern shining in Apollo’s golden eyes.

“I know. But the Underworld was still on lockdown. I didn’t know if we could even get out to get healing. Finishing the quest so Hades would unlock the Underworld again was my best bet.” He said gently. Apollo swallowed and nodded.

“Yet I’m sure you didn’t think of that then.” Poseidon raised an eyebrow at his son. “I bet you didn’t even think of leaving whether you could or not.” Percy grinned sheepishly.

**If I’d been wearing armour, no problem, but I was still in my school uniform.**

Poseidon, Triton and Apollo all glared at Persephone and Hades.

“You didn’t even give him time to get some armour.” Poseidon growled.

“There wasn’t time.” Persephone pointed out. “By the sounds of it they have used over half their time as it is, let alone what would have happened had they stopped to go and fetch armour.”

**The thing’s talons sliced my shirt open and tore...Thalia dressed the wound and I only passed out a few times.**

“You passed out more than once?” Will asked, looking concerned.

“How long did it take to dress the wound?” Triton asked Thalia.

“Only a couple of minutes.” She said, biting her lip.

“That’s not good.” Apollo muttered. “You shouldn’t have passed out so much. You’re in no fit state to continue the quest.”

“We needed him.” Nico sighed. “We couldn’t have finished it without him.”

**I couldn’t judge how much time went by...Percy, but I think you’ll make it.’**

“Good to know you do care.” Percy grinned at her.

“Only because I didn’t want to have to explain to your dad how you died in the Underworld on a quest to fetch some new super weapon for Hades.” She shot back.

“Yeah. That would be bad.” Percy agreed. He did not want to picture his father’s reaction to that. And judging by the shudder Hades gave, he didn’t either.

**Nico crouched next to us...but eventually you’ll need serious healing. I mean a god’s power. Otherwise…’**

“You better have healed him.” Poseidon glared at his brother.

“He’s alive isn’t he.” Hades gestured towards Percy.

**He didn’t finish the thought...Nico said, ‘it can also summon the damned out of Tartarus.**

“Oh that is definitely not good. When we change this you are never,  _ ever _ creating this weapon.” Poseidon told Hades firmly.

“I agree.” Hades said, looking pale. He hadn’t even thought about summoning people from Tartarus. If it was though his carelessness that Kronos managed to gain back his most faithful lieutenants...he didn’t want to finish that thought.

**We can’t let them try.’...they’ll get more chaos and evil out of the deal.’**

“They certainly will. Father is good at chaos and evil.” Zeus muttered, glowering at Hades.

**‘They’re probably right,’ Nico said...‘The Keres would like that. So would Melinoe.’**

“And plenty of other servants of the Underworld.” Hades stated, looking more worried by the second.

**‘You still haven’t told us who Melinoe is.’...‘Who would use it to raise his brothers from Tartarus,’ I guessed.**

“Let’s just hope this Ethan guy doesn’t decide to try that on his own.” Clarisse muttered. “He might decide Melinoe would be more helpful if a Titan was there to persuade her.” She pointed out.

“Way to think cheerful.” Chris scolded gently. “Besides, I don’t think those guys are in any condition to be fighting a Titan.”

“Thalia and Nico seem fine.” Travis pointed out.

“Well, we weren’t hit by the Keres.” Thalia stated. “We weren’t up to fighting a Titan and his demigod helper as well as protecting Percy.” She didn’t add that they had managed, although even with all three of them it had been a close fight.

**‘And we’d be in big trouble.’...‘Percy,’ she said, ‘you’re in no condition –’**

“Exactly.” Amphitrite said, also looking worried.

“There wasn’t any choice. He would be a sitting duck if the other two went on and left him there.” Clarisse pointed out.

“Thanks for the faith.” Percy grumbled.

“You were poisoned and pretty badly injured, forgive me for thinking you’d need the other two to help you not get killed.” Clarisse rolled her eyes.

“You’d be surprised at what Percy can do, even in that condition.” Nico stated.

**‘I have to be.’ I watched as another petal withered...Thalia and Nico would have to haul my useless butt through the rest of the mission.**

“You were anything but useless.” Thalia told him firmly. 

“Definitely.” Nico nodded. “We would have been screwed if you hadn’t been with us.”

“You guys would have figured something out.” Percy assured them.

“You were the only one who wasn’t taken in and you controlled the…” Nico cut himself off before he gave everything away.

“It was a team effort.” Percy stated.

**I was so busy feeling sorry for myself I didn’t...Even the foam churned black.**

“The Lethe.” Hades said grimly.

**The far bank was only ten metres across, but that was too far to jump, and there was no bridge.**

“So how did the other guy make it across?” Katie frowned.

“There are crossing points. He must have found one further away and doubled back.” Persephone said.

“Well these guys don’t have time to look for a bridge.” Frank frowned.

**‘The River Lethe.’ Nico cursed in Ancient Greek…Thalia knelt next to the bank.**

“Don’t touch it.” Zeus ground out anxiously.

“I know.” Thalia assured him. “I still have all my memories.”

**‘Careful!’ Nico said. ‘This is the River of Forgetfulness...maybe anchor a line to one of those rocks.’**

“I would not.” Artemis stated. “It is unlikely it would hold your weight. And Percy would not be able to walk the line anyway.”

“Couldn’t Percy swim across and tie off the line? He doesn’t get wet right?” Leo asked.

“NO!” Poseidon shouted. “He does not get wet in my realm, or even freshwater. The Underworld rivers are not my domain. It may work and it may not. It is not worth the risk. Plus, Percy is injured and such a feat should require all of his concentration.” Percy grimaced. He wondered what his dad was going to say when he found out he  _ had _ taken a swim in the Lethe. Not to mention the fact that he was about to control it.

**‘You want to trust your weight to a line...I winced. ‘What kind of stupid rule is that?’**

“It is just the way it works.” Hades shrugged.

“Good to know I guess.” Percy said. “For future reference.”

**‘Hey, I didn’t make it up.’ He studied my face...Maybe I can redirect the flow long enough to get us across.’**

“You’re going to try what now?” Triton looked at him in astonishment. “You’re actually going to try and control an Underworld river in your condition?”

“It’s still water.” Percy shrugged.

“Dad’s sphere of control is the oceans. Not water everywhere.” Triton pointed out in confusion. “It shouldn’t give you the ability to control every kind of water, particularly not Underworld rivers.” 

“Triton is correct.” Poseidon stated. “Given how powerful you are I can believe it is possible but it most definitely should not be possible given that you have been so severely injured.” Percy had been growing steadily more red as his father and Triton spoke.

“He hasn’t done it yet. Maybe his friends will talk him out of it.” Amphitrite reasoned without much hope. THey all knew by now that Percy would not be talked out of at least trying.

**‘In your condition?’ Nico said. ‘No way...Magical Underworld rivers? I had no idea.**

“It shouldn’t be.” Hades grumbled. If the Underworld rivers were under anyone’s control it should be his.

“I could even understand controlling the Styx because Styx herself is a daughter of Oceanus and Tethys, the Titans associated with oceans so there is a loose connection there and a distant blood relation.” Poseidon mused. “But the Lethe? She is the daughter of Nyx herself with no connection to the ocean.”

  
“Your son is completely abnormal.” Hades stated in wonder and a little bit of concern. He could not believe a demigod was  _ this _ powerful.

**‘Stand back,’ I said...just wide enough for two people to walk side by side.**

“Holy…” Apollo’s voice faded in awe. “That is…” Everybody was looking at Percy in complete awe, including Nico and Thalia who already knew this was possible. Percy was trying to hide behind his dad, completely red in the face from the attention.

The Romans were all watching Percy like he might explode any second. Even after hearing him blow up a volcano, he was still able to shock and impress them with his powers. However this also reinforced their general fear of Neptune and his offspring.

“Impossible.” Zeus growled. “This boy is far too powerful. This should not be possible.”

“And yet it is happening and therefore is not impossible.” Poseidon stated simply. He was looking down at his son who now had his face buried in his father’s chest. Percy was beyond anything he had ever heard of before. Maybe he was destined to become a god because there really weren't many other explanations for that kind of power. Even as a child of the prophecy, he shouldn’t be this powerful. If he ever became a god...well, Zeus’ paranoia would go off the scale. And Poseidon thought he might have a small reason. While he trusted Percy completely and knew he would never turn on the gods...if he did, he could probably put up a very strong fight. Especially as Poseidon and Apollo would back him, along with possibly a few others gods.

“You are completely incredible.” Apollo told Percy sincerely. Percy briefly looked up to smile at him and the smile he received in return was almost blinding.

“Percy is so cool.” Hermes grinned. While he would be concerned about any demigod having that much power, like Poseidon, he trusted that Percy wouldn’t turn on them. They had read enough about him and spent enough time with him to be sure of that.

“That is wicked.” Connor whispered.

“I so wish I could have seen that.” Will said. “What was it like?” He asked Nico.

“Indescribable.” Nico told him honestly. “The sheer power radiating from him, even though he looked about to drop dead on his feet, was incredible.” Will nodded.

“The boy is far too powerful.” Athena stated, looking at Percy in concern.

“Well he is expected to save the world.” Amphitrite pointed out. “He will need all the power he can get.”

“Let us continue reading.” Hestia cut in. “We can all see the boy means no harm to Olympus. Let us be grateful to have such a powerful, loyal demigod on our side.” Percy looked up once more to smile gratefully at the goddess. She smiled in return and then turned back to make sure Zeus didn’t keep arguing.

**Thalia and Nico stared at me in amazement.**

**‘Go,’ I said. ‘I can’t hold this for long.’**

“You shouldn’t be able to hold it at all.” Zeus grumbled uncomfortably.

**Yellow spots danced in front of my eyes...‘Come on, Percy!’ she said. ‘Walk!’**

“You expect him to be able to move and concentrate on that?” Hades asked. “He should be so exhausted he sleeps for a week after this stunt.”

**My knees were shaking. My arms trembled...‘No!’ And my concentration broke.**

“Percy!” Poseidon cried.

“How the heck do you still have your memories?” Apollo asked in astonishment.

“I guess if he does have the ability to control the Lethe then he can stop himself getting wet. If he doesn’t get wet, the water hasn’t touched him and so he retains his memories.” Triton answered, though he was guessing completely. This was uncharted territory. Of course he didn’t think any other demigod son of his father had been desperate or stupid enough to ever actually  _ try _ controlling the Underworld rivers. It was making him curious as to whether he would be able to control the Underworld rivers. If Percy was able to then he should too, especially as a minor god not just a demigod but he knew each child of a god had slightly different powers.

**As the River Lethe crashed down on me, I had time for one last desperate thought: Dry.**

“At least you had time to think about that and concentrate on that thought.” Amphitrite nodded.

**I heard the roar and felt the crash of tons of water...I slogged forward through the black current, blind and doubled over with pain.**

“Holy cow.” Katie whispered. 

“How in the heck did you manage to keep concentrating in that?” Jason wondered.

“He did pass out for a bit but he was actually functioning after a few minutes.” Thalia put in.

“That’s just insane.” Beckendorf stated.

“My best guess is that all the power he used to erupt Mt St Helens made his body get used to using more power than it ever had before.” Poseidon said thoughtfully. “Once his body knew he could handle that kind of power it adjusted. But I cannot be sure, Percy is a phenomenon.”

**I climbed out of the River Lethe, surprising Thalia and Nico, who jumped back a good two metres.**

“Thanks guys.” Percy grumbled but he was smiling.

“We were expecting you to be wet and we didn’t want to touch the water ourselves.” Nico explained.

“Fair enough.” Percy nodded. It did make sense.

**I staggered forward, collapsed in front of my friends...My eyes felt hot, like I had a fever.**

“How long was he out?” Apollo asked anxiously.

“Only five minutes or so.” Nico said, thinking back.

“He’s already had quite a bit of nectar.” Will pointed out nervously.

“We had no other choice. He was going green.” Thalia argued. Will nodded. “We knew we couldn’t risk using too much.”

**‘We can’t risk any more nectar,’ Thalia was saying...It still hurt, but I was able to stand.**

“You’re a miracle.” Apollo smiled.

“You should be unconscious for hours with the amount of power you used even if you had been at full strength.” Triton told Percy, eyes wide.

“Ok. I get it. I’m a walking miracle.” Percy sighed. “Can we stop pointing it out every second.” 

“We would if you stopped reaching new heights of strangeness every second.” Beckendorf told him. “Each time we think you can’t get any more powerful...BOOM, you do something like this.” Percy groaned and buried his face in his dad’s chest once more.

**‘We’re close,’ Nico said. ‘Can you walk?’...The path was lined with human bones for that extra-cosy feel.**

“Oh yes. Who wouldn’t feel cosy with a path of human bones?” Piper asked sarcastically. “I always feel at home with one of those around.”

**‘Ready,’ I said...‘The goddess of ghosts. What’s not to like?’**

“Literally everything.” Leo said.

“Pretty much.” Percy agreed.

**As if in response, a hissing sound echoed...She wore a pink bathrobe and had a wine glass in her hand.**

“Seriously?” Reyna wondered.

“Yep.” Percy nodded. “Seriously.”

**Her face was stern and disapproving...she growled. ‘Well, it’s too late!’**

“Come back? They haven’t been there before.” Connor pointed out with a frown.

“That wasn’t Melinoe. She’s taking the guise of someone that one of them knows. A ghost they know.” Chris explained. “And judging by their expressions, I’m guessing it’s someone Thalia knows.” Sure enough, Thalia had gone ghostly white. Jason and Annabeth were looking at her in concern.

**I looked at Nico and whispered, ‘Melinoe?’...Suddenly she looked about seven years old.**

Thalia was glaring at the floor while Jason was blinking rapidly with a broken expression on his face.

**The spirit threw down her wine glass...Why did you run away when I needed you?’**

“What happened to her is not your fault.” Jason told his sister firmly, though he was still pale and shaking himself. “You stayed as long as you could from what you told me. She was the adult, it was not your responsibility to look after her. You were a kid.” He continued.

“I know.” Thalia said but her voice came out tired and broken. 

“Jason is right.” Annabeth stated. “What happened to your mom was tragic but not your fault.”

“Yeah.” Thalia nodded, her voice stronger this time. Annabeth and Jason each squeezed one of her hands and she blinked a few times before giving them both a wan smile.

**‘I – I –’...‘But – you abandoned me,’ Thalia said.**

“Exactly.” Jason nodded.

“It’s not your mom.” Annabeth stated. “It’s just Melinoe messing with your head.”

**‘You wretched girl! Ungrateful runaway!’...string of pearls and white gloves, and her dark hair was tied back.**

Hades grimaced and now Nico was the one going pale.

“You ok?” Will whispered.

“Yeah.” Nico exhaled a shaky breath. “It just took me by surprise.” Will nodded but wrapped his arms around Nico anyway, offering comfort where he could. He was a bit surprised but pleased when the son of Hades actually leaned into his embrace rather than keeping his distance.

**Nico stopped in his tracks. ‘No…’...I haunt the world in grief, wondering about you and your sister.’**

Hades’ face crumpled. Even if it was Melinoe, he couldn’t face the prospect of his Maria becoming a ghost, desperately trying to find her children. Persephone gripped his hand despite the distaste on her face she was trying desperately to hide.

**‘Mama?’...I saw the goddess of ghosts in her true form.**

“Really?” Hades was grateful for the new thing to focus on. “You resisted her power? That is impressive.”

“I made my peace with those that died.” Percy said simply. Hades nodded. He envied that ability. He knew Maria’s death would haunt him forever.

**You’d think after a while I would stop getting freaked...I felt as if I were seeing my own death.**

“Doesn’t she sound delightful.” Silena asked sarcastically, wrinkling her nose.

“Nope.” Piper said seriously. All the demigods were now wondering who they would see if they looked upon Melinoe.

**‘Where are your ghosts?’ she demanded in irritation...Bianca di Angelo, Zoë Nightshade, Lee Fletcher, to name a few.**

Hades, Artemis and Apollo all flinched. Will, Michael and Nico all closed their eyes and tried desperately not to cry.

**‘I’ve made my peace with them,’ I said.**

“That is a very brave and impressive thing to do. Most people cannot let go. Especially when they have seen so many people die.” Hades stated, impressed with his nephew.

“It took a long time.” Percy admitted.

“I;d be amazed if it didn’t.” Hades nodded. “But you did so in the end. That is a feat in itself.”

**‘They’ve passed on. They’re not ghosts...leaving only one. ‘The deal has been struck.’**

“That’s not good.” Hermes muttered.

**‘What deal?’ I demanded.**

“She’s agreed to help the other demigod out of the Underworld I guess.” Ares growled.

“Well hurry up and deal with her.” Zeus snapped. “You need to stop them before they reach the surface.” Nobody pointed out that this had obviously been achieved.

**Melinoe made a hissing sound, and I realized..Soon, Percy Jackson, you will have many ghosts. And you will remember me.’**

Percy grimaced. He knew people were going to die in the upcoming war. It was pretty much unavoidable. Still, he wondered how many of them would become his ghosts. Would he be directly responsible for the death of one of his friends? He knew that would be a death he could not forgive himself for.

**Thalia notched an arrow and aimed it at the goddess…He’ll cast you into Tartarus along with the rest of Hades’s servants.’**

“Thalia has a point.” Clarisse said. “Anyone who believes Kronos’ promises is a fool.” Chris cringed beside her. “Hey, you realised your mistake and came back to our side. I didn’t mean you.” She added quietly.

**Melinoe bared her teeth. ‘Your mother was right, Thalia. You are an angry girl. Good at running away. Not much else.’**

“Thalia’s good at loads of things.” Annabeth hissed angrily.

“Of course she is.” Artemis stated calmly. “This minor goddess is simply trying to get inside her head.”

**The arrow flew, but as it touched Melinoe...like someone had smacked him between the eyes.**

Both of them glared at the book angrily.

**‘The thief…’ he managed. ‘Probably in the cave...as if Ethan had already invoked its power.**

“That’s because he probably has.” Hades stated simply. “I’m guessing the person in the prison suit in Iapetus.”

Poseidon uttered several curses. There was no way his son was up to facing a Titan.

“He may not be at full power.” Demeter pointed out. “If he has only just been summoned from Tartarus then it is bound to be disorientating and he will need time to gather his strength.”

“Oh good.” Poseidon muttered sarcastically. Even if he was not at full power, Iapetus would prove a powerful foe for his son who had already expended tremendous amounts of power and he was injured.

**The giant man next to him had eyes of pure silver...He held out his hand and a giant spear appeared.**

“Well that’s definitely Iapetus.” Ares commented unhelpfully.

“Yes. We noticed that.” Zeus snapped angrily. He didn’t want his daughter anywhere near that monster. If a hair on her head was injured he was going to kill Hades.

**I remembered what Thalia had said about Iapetus...‘Whatever. I’m sure my brother Kronos will reward you.**

“I love how much they care.” Silena muttered sarcastically. “Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.”

“At least if they stick around then Percy, Thalia and Nico have a chance at getting the sword back. If they ran now then there would be no chance.” Clarisse pointed out.

“Yes but Percy’s injured.” Connor reminded her.

**But now we have killing to attend to.’...Our orders were to flee.’**

“He won’t like that.” Hades muttered,

“Hopefully he’ll turn on his own ally.” Poseidon replied without much real hope.

**The Titan whirled on him. ‘FLEE? Did you say FLEE?’...I want revenge, and I will start by killing these weaklings!’**

“Weaklings? Dude, you have no  _ idea _ who you’re dealing with.” Travis laughed.

“Yeah, those three will kick your butt.” Connor agreed.

**He levelled his spear at me and charged...before his spear impaled the rock where I’d been standing.**

Poseidon tightened his grip on his son. Iapetus had been one of Kronos’ best fighters, alongside his son, Atlas. Even at full strength, he was not sure how the demigods had managed to prevail. 

Apollo disregarded any attempts to give Percy his space and moved to the side not occupied by Poseidon. He took Percy’s hand and took it as a good sign that the demigod allowed it rather than snatching his hand away.

**I was so dizzy I could barely hold my sword...flank full of arrows from his shoulder to his knee.**

Zeus and Artemis both nodded their approval.

**He roared and turned on her, looking more angry...Three armoured skeletons climbed out and engaged Ethan, pushing him back.**

“Well done.” Hades told his son.

**The sword of Hades still lay on the rocks...impaling the blade in the Titan’s calf.**

“Nice job.” Triton praised.

“The problem is they can’t kill a Titan.” Aphrodite pointed out.

“Maybe they can find a way to drop him back to Tartarus.” Zeus said hopefully.

“Unlikely.” Hades stated. “There aren’t many entrances to the Pit. And none of them are near Melinoe’s cave.”

**‘AHHHH!’ Golden ichor gushed from the wound...Nico stabbed with his sword but Iapetus knocked him aside without even looking.**

Hades, Zeus and Artemis were all sporting similar worried expressions.

**‘I will kill you all! Then I will cast your souls...Another couple of centimetres and I would fall into the river headfirst.**

“Oh Hades.” Apollo muttered, tightening his grip on Percy’s hand. “Seriously how do you get yourself into these kinds of scrapes?”

“I’m talented.” Percy offered a half smirk.

**The river.**

“Oh dear. Crazy Percy idea time.” Annabeth winced.

“Hey. It worked.” Thalia pointed out. “And, well, there really weren’t any other options. We were all going to die if this plan didn’t work.”

“That’s pretty much always the case with Percy’s plans.” Poseidon groaned.

**I swallowed, hoping my voice still worked...and together we pitched into the Lethe.**

“WHAT?” Poseidon and Apollo yelled together.

“Well, we know Percy can remain dry if he wants to.” Artemis pointed out tentatively.

“Yeah but he was thinking about it then. This time he was focused on getting Iapetus into the Lethe.” Apollo pointed out, voice breaking in concern.

“I’m ok.” Percy reminded him. “I still have all my memories and stuff.”

**FLOOOOOM! I was immersed in black water...somehow the river was channelling itself around me, leaving us alone.**

“Holy Hephaestus.” Beckendorf breathed. “You’re insane.”

“I know.” Percy shrugged.

“You weren’t even concentrating.” Triton muttered, awe written all over his face.

“I did pray to dad.” Percy pointed out.

“Yeah but it’s not his realm.” Amphitrite reminded him. “He would be unable to help you.”

“Maybe Percy is protected by the Fates themselves.” Apollo suggested. “He saw them snip the cord so maybe they have a specific time in mind and so he cannot die before then.”

Are you suggesting he is temporarily immortal?” Athena looked as if he had gone crazy.

“Do you have any other explanation?” Artemis asked. “No demigod should have this power.” Athena frowned but shook her head. The boy should be dead or have lost his memory.

**With my last bit of strength, I climbed out of the river...That seemed to please him greatly. ‘I am your friend Bob!’**

“Did you just..?” Apollo asked weakly.

“I think he did.” Hermes answered, looking awed.

“He wiped a Titan’s memory and renamed him Bob.” Poseidon agreed in astonishment. His son continued to amaze him. Everything about this was improbable and completely insane and yet his son had done it. He had swam in the Lethe, not once, but  _ twice _ and survived with his memories intact.

“Why Bob?” Reyna wanted to know.

“It was the first name that popped into my mind.” Percy shrugged.

**Clearly, Ethan could tell things were not going his way...Thalia took aim at his back, but I said, ‘No. Let him go.’**

“Seriously? That’s the second time you’ve saved his miserable life.” Jason scowled. “Last time he repayed you by resurrecting Kronos himself. Who knows what he’ll do this time?”

“I figure Kronos’ punishment for failure will be enough.” Percy shrugged.

**She frowned but lowered her bow...I managed a weak smile. ‘Yeah, Bob. You were great.’**

“I can’t believe this.” Ares stated while the rest of the gods burst into laughter.

  
“I wonder how Bob is getting on?” Percy frowned.

“He’s alright. I visit from time to time.” NIco told him.

“You do?”

“Yeah. He’s not treated terribly or anything.”

  
“Good.” Percy smiled.

**We got an express ride back to the palace of Hades...noticed my shoulder wound, said, ‘Owie,’ and healed it with a touch.**

“Wow.” Poseidon breathed,

“Yeah. Bob’s a handy guy to have around.” Percy said.

“I’m just glad you finally got some healing.” Apollo muttered.

“Yeah, you couldn’t leave him behind after that.” Beckendorf nodded. “Besides, with his mind wiped, he has a chance to be a new person. Do some good instead of destroy.” 

**Anyway, by the time we arrived in the throne room of Hades...but finally he made the promise through clenched teeth.**

“Well done.” Poseidon praised his son.

“It was wise of you to extract such a promise.” Hades muttered a little bitterly. “Even if using it against my own brothers was not my plan at all.”

**Nico laid the sword at his father’s feet and bowed, waiting for a reaction.**

**Hades looked at his wife. ‘You defied my direct orders.’**

“What?” Hades frowned. He glanced at his wife and realisation dawned. That was why everything had felt a little off. He had not agreed to this at all. Persephone had done this without his agreement.

**I wasn’t sure what he was talking about...I will cut them out.’**

“You would not dare.” Poseidon scowled.

You will not touch my daughter.” Zeus agreed, looking furious. 

**‘You’re welcome,’ I said…’Crush these, and they will return you to the world of the living. You have my lord’s thanks.’**

“Yeah. He seemed so grateful.” Connor muttered.

**‘I could tell,’ Thalia muttered...He didn’t even know it existed.’**

Everyone turned to stare at Persephone, opened mouthed.

“Daughter?” Demeter asked quietly, sounding beyond confused. “Why would you do this?”

I want my husband to be equal with his brothers.” Persephone snapped. “He did not deserve what they did to him and we need a way to defend ourselves from Kronos when the Olympians abandoned us once again.” Her voice grew heated and sharp.

“My dear…” Hades attempted to calm her down.

“No!” She scowled. “I have had enough of them belittling you and assuming the worst of you.”

“Well making me a new weapon won’t exactly help with them thinking the worst of me.” Hades pointed out evenly. Persephone huffed and didn’t respond.

**‘Nonsense,’ the goddess said...get the sword back before Hades found out. You used us.’**

Hades gaped at his wife. Not only had she apparently gone against his command not to make the weapon but she had lost it and shut down  _ his _ realm to fix her mistake. Everyone was staring at her once again.

**Persephone moistened her lips...Bob will help me. Won’t you, Bob?’**

Persephone looked outraged but Zeus and Poseidon were glaring at her furiously.

“It would be the least you deserve.” Poseidon stated. “How dare you use my son in such a fashion? He almost died for this nonsense.”

“But he didn’t.” Persephone pointed out.

“Only because he is more powerful than any of us dreamed. And because he managed to convince a Titan he was Percy’s friend and so he healed him,.”

“Hades would have healed him.” 

“You were so certain of that you risked our entire future?” Hades frowned. “If Percy had died on this quest, nothing on or below the earth would have quenched Poseidon’s thirst for vengeance.”

“Damn right.” Poseidon agreed, scowling furiously at Persephone. She shuddered slightly.

**‘Bob will help you!’ Iapetus agreed cheerfully.**

A few of the demigods smirked. As far as they were concerned, Persephone deserved it for the way she had manipulated Percy and Thalia. They even felt bad for Nico. She had prayed on his desire to make his dad proud, a feeling all of them knew all too well. It made every single demigod angry.

**Persephone’s eyes widened, and she disappeared in a shower of daisies.**

Good riddance.” Thalia muttered.

**Nico, Thalia and I said our goodbyes...house out of bones and laughing every time it collapsed.**

The gods all looked completely bemused by this while all the demigods were snickering in amusement.

“Well, at least Kronos won’t be getting one of his best fighters back by his side.” Ares pointed out. 

“True.” Poseidon nodded. “Despite the sword’s existence this has been a success for us.”

**‘I’ll watch him,’ Nico said. ‘He’s harmless now...He needs a better adviser.’**

“How dare you?” Persephone glared. 

“After what you did to us? I have every right to believe you are a rubbish advisor.” Nico scowled right back. Hades glanced between them both.

“What you did was foolish and beyond risky.” Hades told his wife. “But do not presume I will appreciate your council.” He added, looking at his son. “This reading has taught me much and I believe my future self will not appreciate what you have to say.” Nico nodded. That much was true. He had barely made any headway with his father in the six months since this had happened.

**I couldn’t argue with that. ‘Well, if you need anything –’...‘Percy, you haven’t forgotten my offer?’**

Percy grimaced.

“What offer?” Apollo wanted to know.

“The offer I made at the end of the last book.” Nico told him. “I’m sure you’ll find out soon enough.” He added.

**A shiver went down my spine...And I’ve had enough danger for one day.’**

“Fair enough.” Nico nodded. “You weren’t in any condition to go through with it then anyway, even after being healed.” Percy nodded.

**Thalia nodded. ‘In that case, still up for dinner?’...we crushed the roses that would return us to the world.**

“That’s it.” Chris announced. “That was another long one. You were right” He added, looking at Clarisse.

“Well let us take the rest of the afternoon off and resume reading the next book tomorrow.” Chiron stated. Everyone nodded. It took a few minutes for people to begin moving but they slowly started making their way out of the throne room.

Apollo grabbed Percy’s arm as he made to stand up.

“We need to talk.” He said. 

“Agreed.” Percy nodded. “Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next book will start with an interlude chapter before the first chapter of The Last Olympian.


End file.
